Wallflower
by BEN-Beyond the Elusive Nomads
Summary: During the Marauders 7th year at Hogwarts, a girl suddenly makes her way into their lives; What Sirius wants to know is why he never noticed her before. SBOC JPLE Cannon Pairings, AU ending
1. Introducing Adelaide Vicknair

**Wallflower**

**Chapter One: **Introducing Adelaide Vicknair

_Wallflower: __A person, usually in high school, who sees everything and knows everything that's going on but doesn't say a word…a person nobody pays attention to, and fades into the background, but are really genuine and interesting people if you take the time to get to know them._

Sirius Black was a proud person; he had shoulder-length black hair, grey eyes, and aristocratic features that many girls fell in love with, a personality that seemed to just draw people in, and three best friends whom he would gladly give his life for. Though he was good looking, he didn't often abuse his looks. Yes, he dated on occasion, and yes he had shagged some girls, but not on a daily basis like some could assume. Rumors went around, as could be expected, but over half of them weren't true. The only reason he made no attempt to deny them was because the people who mattered knew the truth.

The person in question was currently making his way through a crowded train station, Kings Cross to be exact, and headed towards platforms nine and ten, where he would proceed to platform nine and three – quarters for the last time. The platform held many fond memories for him; it was where he met James Potter, his brother in everyway save for blood, and it was where he departed from his horror of a family for the first of many times.

He paid no mind as he headed to the pillar between platforms nine and ten, not even gaining speed as he steered his cart with one hand and shoved his other deep into his pocket. E didn't even bat an eyelash as he walked through the wall and reappeared on the other side, where a glistening red train awaited him. He maneuvered through the crowds easily, ignoring the glances he got from several girls, before he grabbed his luggage and boarded the train, making his way to what he considered The Marauders Compartment. When he entered he was greeted by the sight of Remus Lupin, who sat reading a thick book. He glanced up and smiled at his friend, before hugging him in a warm welcome.

"Good to see you in one piece," he said happily, before pulling away and helping Sirius heft his luggage into the overhead compartments. Remus Lupin was a good-looking guy with light brown hair and very pale features, and looked a bit older then he actually was. He was generally a very kind boy, and excelled in his studies, but due to his 'furry-little-problem' (as his friends' referred to it) or his lycanthropy, he suffered greatly with scars on his face and body.

Sirius grinned back at him,

"The same could be said for you," he said cheekily, earning a laugh in response. He sat down across from Remus, beside the window where he watched people saying goodbye to their families.

After receiving a large amount of money from his uncle Alphard Black, as well as inheriting his house, he moved out of James' parents house (where he had been staying) and began to live on his own. The money he got from his uncle was enough to keep him afloat for the summer (given the house was already paid off fully) and would be able to hold him off for a few more months after graduating from Hogwarts, and by then he would already have a job.

"So, how was life on your own?" Remus asked as he bookmarked his page and sat his book aside. Sirius shrugged.

"Pretty boring; I spent most of the time visiting James," he said truthfully, "What about you?"

"Same as always," Remus sighed softly, "rather boring actually." Sirius smirked and pointed at himself with his thumb.

"That's because you didn't have me around 24/7." He said. Remus rolled his eyes and chuckled.

"Thank Merlin for that," he said, and Sirius laughed good-naturedly.

"Well, I see you two are getting on just fine without us," a voice said from the doorway, and they turned to see James Potter grinning at them with the smaller Peter Pettigrew standing slightly behind him.

James Potter was a handsome boy with messy black hair and hazel eyes. He lacked the aristocratic features that made Sirius so popular, but made up for it with an abundant amount of boyish charm. He came from a pure-blood wizarding family and had quite a bit of wealth, which made him more desirable. Unfortunately for the girls (and on the rare occasions, boys) who sought his attention, James had been after the heart of muggle-born witch Lily Evans since the middle of his first year.

Peter, on the other hand, was a rather short boy with round, watery eyes very similar to a rat. He had mousy brown hair, and he seemed very different compared to his friends, whom were all very good looking. He was the least desirable of the marauders, and the dullest of the four. While the others all excelled at their studies, he always needed extra help to keep him afloat (if only barely).

"Prongs, ol' pal!" Sirius said with a large grin, "How was you're summer?"

"You should know, you were there half the time," James retorted with a grin, before taking a seat beside his friends. Of all the Marauders, James and Sirius were by far the closest.

"True, true," Sirius said with a nod, before he grinned at Peter, who had taken a seat beside Remus, "How about you, wormy? How was your summer."

"I-It was fine," he responded, "Nothing to exciting to talk about."

"And you, Mooney?" James asked, "how was your summer?"

"Same as always," he responded again, "Rather boring."

"Whoa," Sirius said with a grin, "Talk about Déjà vu."

"What about Vuja de?" James asked, earning looks from the others.

"What?" Peter asked. James' grin widened.

"The feeling that this has never happened before," he said, and the other's laughed. Then the train whistled and began to leave the station. Parents were waving at their children, siblings crying as they complained about their inability to go, and students waved out the window to their parents.

"It's weird, isn't it? Sirius asked, turning to his friends, "We're never going to board the Hogwarts Express again; with the intent of going to Hogwarts, that is."

"Yeah, it is kind of weird," James agreed with a nod, "I'm going to miss the place." The others agreed, when someone knocked on the compartment door before slowly opening it. It was a girl with layered burgundy-brown hair that was parted on the side and hung in very loose spirals that reached the middle of her upper back. She had pale skin, and was medium height (around 5'5") and had very feminine features that were contradicted by her outfit: a large white tee-shirt and grey sweat pants. She was chewing on her bottom lip as she looked at the four nervously.

"U-Um, do you mind if I sit here?" she whispered, shifting her weight, "I-I can't find any other seats."

"Go ahead," Remus said with a smile. She moved further into the compartment and began to heft her luggage into the racks.

"Do you need some help?" Sirius asked after a moment, and she blushed and smiled shyly.

"I-If it's not too much trouble," she said, and he stood and easily placed it next to his own. She smiled gratefully and took a seat beside Remus and across from him, "Th-thank you."

"No problem," he responded, "I'm not one to ignore a damsel in distress." He grinned, and she blushed before staring down at her lap where her hands were fisted on the hem of her shirt, which looked about five sizes too big.

"Why are you dressed like that?" Peter asked, oblivious of the looks he gained from the other Marauders. The girls blush deepened and she shifted in her seat.

"Um…I got up late, so I didn't have time to change," she said, "Sorry if it bugs you."

"Not at all," James stepped in, throwing a look at the now confused Peter, "My name is James, and this is-"

"Remus, Sirius, and Peter," she whispered with a shy smile, "I've seen you all already; we're all seventh year Gryffindors."

"Why haven't we seen you then?" Sirius asked. She shrugged and gnawed on her lip for a second.

"I-I'm not that sociable, I'm rather shy actually," she murmured, blushing as she continued to toy with her shirt, "We also have identical schedules."

"I'm amazed we haven't noticed you," Remus said politely, "We're normally more observant then that." She shook her head.

"It's fine; I don't mind." She responded, glancing up through her hair at the four.

"Well, what's your name then?" Peter asked.

"A-Adelaide, Adelaide Vicknair," She said with a shy smile, "It's a pleasure to make your acquaintance."

"The pleasure is all ours," Sirius responded smoothly. Adelaide just offered a small upturn of her lips, before she looked out the window with a still bowed head. Sirius watched her with curious eyes, and the others chose to ignore it as they continued to talk amongst themselves. Sirius was rather surprised that she had gone unnoticed by him for seven years; she was quite pretty. She must be a master of disillusionment charm, he though wryly to himself, for her to go unnoticed by all four of them, peter excluded of course: he wasn't very observant to begin with.

"Where are you from?" Sirius asked, and Adelaide looked at him, a bit less shy then before.

"I was born in France; I moved to Ottery St. Catchpole when I was nine because my mother didn't want me attending Beauxbatons or Durmstrang," she said truthfully, "Why?"

"You have an odd accent," he said truthfully, "A mix between French and British." Se smiled and laughed, her eyes lighting up in the process.

"Yes, well, I guess that would explain it," she said and Sirius grinned. He missed the looks that Remus, James, and Peter shared.

"Now if only Lily would come in, my life would be complete," James said, looking at the door hopefully. Adelaide looked over at James.

"You mean Lily Evans?" she asked. James sighed and nodded wistfully.

"My darling Lily-flower," he said ad Remus and Sirius rolled their eyes, "One day she will return my feelings; this I promise you!" He straightened up at his declaration, before slouching again and watching the door with hope etched into his features. Adelaide smiled again.

"I think you have a good chance," she said truthfully, "You seem like a good guy; she'll come around eventually." Everyone looked at her now, and she blushed at all the attention and looked back at her lap.

"Really?" James asked hopefully, "Do you really think so?" She nodded shyly, and James seemed to have an epiphany, "you! You're a girl!" She smiled slightly.

"Yes, I thought that was a given," she teased timidly, and Sirius was amazed at how she was able to tease him yet still retain her shy appearance.

"No, that means you share a dorm with Lily!" he beamed, "Does she talk about me?" She bit her lip as she contemplated her response.

"Well, for the past six years she usually complains about how you're an 'arrogant toerag," she admitted and James face fell. She immediately tried to redeem herself though, and held her hands out in front of her, "B-but that doesn't mean she doesn't like you! There's a thin line between love and hate!" James snorted and slouched again. She it her lip again and her voice was quieter as she spoke again,

"I-I think that if you, maybe, laid off of her a bit, treated her as a friend and not a potential girlfriend, then she'll warm up to you," she offered, "The thing that bugs her about you is that you constantly hex people for fun and you sometimes are a bit full of yourself (her words, not mine). Maybe you should lay off a bit and just be yourself around her and she'll come around." James looked at her hopefully.

"Do you really think that?" he asked, and she offered a timid smile and a nod.

"Y-Yes, I do," James seemed to be filled with relief and he relaxed in his seat.

"Thanks, Adelaide," he said, "You're the best." She blushed and looked down at her lap immediately, but they didn't seem to want to stop talking there.

"What are you thinking of being after Hogwarts?" Peter asked her with a grin. She glanced at him before returning her gaze quickly back to her lap.

"I'm going to be an unspeakable," she said softly, "but I think I'd be more comfortable being a teacher or a healer," she shifted uncomfortably.

"Then why not do that?" Remus asked politely, watching her with an easy air.

"M-My parents would prefer that I work in the ministry," she said softly, and Sirius scoffed.

"Why do something you hate?" he asked, "Who cares what your parents think?"

"Not all of us are like you, Padfoot," Remus began, but Adelaide shook her head.

"N-No," she whispered, looking up and smiling, mostly at Sirius, "He's right; thank you." The others watched as Sirius just nodded, watching her carefully as she turned to look out the window at the passing sights.

The trip passed peacefully, the Marauders leaving Adelaide alone for the most part save for when they used her unbiased opinion to smooth over a few petty arguments that would spring up. By the time the trolley came around with snacks, she had stopped stuttering and didn't blush nearly as often. After James left to go to the Heads compartments, Peter often tried to include her in conversations, but it seemed most of the time she couldn't really grasp what he was trying to explain to her, and by the time someone tried to explain it, the moment had passed and he decided to move on.

When the train finally came to a stop, they had already dressed (the boys dutifully turning their backs to her) and they had already begun to feel hunger pains at the thought of the oncoming feast. They managed to get off of the train and into the carriages without being separated, and then Adelaide ended up setting with them in the great hall as well. This led to Peter asking why she sat with them which led to her reverting back to a stuttering, blushing fool.

"Shut up, Peter, she can sit here if she damn well wants to," Sirius had responded testily, before Remus soothed Adelaide into not moving and enjoying the present company.

By the time the night was over, each of the Marauders found themselves pondering over the shy girl, and wondering why they had never seen her before today.

-

**End Chapter One.**

**Disclaimer: Disclaimer: **Harry Potter and all things concerning belong to J.K. Rowling. I own Adelaide Vicknair, Vanessa Wolfe, Caryn Gree, Elise Barnes, Madeline Vicknair, Annalisa Bertucci, Professor Sicily and Jean Vicknair.

**A/N:** I don't think people realize that the Marauder Era takes place in the 1970's...And I say this is a Prequel because I came up with the idea Edelweiss first (not yet posted). And the 'definition' at that top of the page came from Urban Dictionary. No flames, and if you have something to complain about please word it as if it were constructive criticism. I do not tolerate flames, and if you do flame I will single you out in a long authors note at the bottom of the page, completely explaining why you are an idiot who needs an attitude adjustment and to learn what the purpose of reviews are. If you need proof of me actually doing this, refer to 'Final Lifeline' chapter thirteen at the very bottom. It's five paragraphs long.

Yours truly,  
B.E.N.


	2. Family Matters

**Wallflower**

**Chapter Two: **Family Matters

"Good Morning, Class," Professor McGonagall said as she entered the room at a brisk pace. She received grumbled responses but that didn't seem to deter her as she continued to the front of the room, before turning and facing the class.

As she began to talk to them about the importance of their NEWTS, Sirius kept his eye on Adelaide. She sat in the front of the class and was dutifully taking notes on whatever McGonagall said. She had tied her hair up in a pony tail to keep it out of her face, and she was hunched over her paper studiously. Sirius didn't need to look twice to notice that her uniform fitted her very well; she was actually quite fit and had a flat stomach with perfect assets, neither too big nor too small. He really had no idea why he hadn't noticed her before now.

Then, as if she felt him staring at her, she turned in her seat and caught his gaze. They held it for a solid two seconds before she blushed and returned to her work. While Professor McGonagall continued to explain what she expected for her class, he observed Adelaide carefully and curiously. She was interesting to him because she had managed to stay under the radar for almost seven years; that in it self seemed amazing in a school like Hogwarts.

"Now, I hope you are not too comfortable with your seating arrangement, because I will be rearranging you," McGonagall said briskly, moving behind her desk where she looked at the seating chart she had prepared before hand, "I created this based on your abilities so that there is no way you can take credit for another persons work. I trust that you work well together, because you will be setting there for the rest of the year. Now, if everyone would stand and move to the left of the class room…"

Students did as they were instructed with muffled complaint, and Sirius sighed in annoyance but otherwise complied. He stood beside James, his previous partner, who stood beside Remus.

"Hopefully we'll be paired with someone we like," James said casually, glancing at Lily surreptitiously.

"James Potter, Lily Evans, if you could sit here," McGonagall instructed pointing to the back right hand desk, "And Vanessa Wolfe and Remus Lupin, take a seat here…"

"Sirius Black, Adelaide Vicknair, if you could take a seat here," McGonagall said, motioning to a desk in the last row in the left hand corner. They both did so without complaint (he did sit next to Remus after all, though not at the same desk). When everyone took their seats, Sirius realized that McGonagall had organized it so that the poorer students were seated up front; among them was Peter, who was seated with Annalisa Bertucci, a Slytherin who was also less then average at Transfiguration, in the second row to the right.

"Looks like we meet again," Sirius said casually, and Adelaide smiled shyly.

"Y-Yeah, I guess so," she said. He then noticed she had put on a pair or dark rimmed glasses perched on her nose.

"You need glasses?" He asked without thinking. She smiled shyly and nodded.

"Only for reading things to terribly far away," she responded, "Otherwise I get on just fine."

When McGonagall finished she was back at the front of the class with her mouth in a straight line. She began to move things around on her desk before taking a seat. She looked at the class over her glasses, and by now they had only twenty minutes left to the class. She realized this, apparently, as she said, "Since that took more time then I had anticipated, I'm going to let you converse to your partner, _and only your partner_, so you can be at least civilized to each other. If things get to loud," at this she looked at the back where the marauders (or most of them) were setting, "I will assign you all homework."

When the students realized she was done talking, they turned to their partners (in some cases awkwardly, like Peter and Annalisa) and attempted to begin a conversation. Sirius grinned wolfishly and angled his seat so that he was facing Adelaide. He leaned back and crossed his arms over his chest and waited as she angled her chair towards him.

"So, how are we going to go about getting to know each other?" he asked casually, and Adelaide bit her lip softly, a nervous habit of hers, apparently.

"Well, we can take turns asking each other questions," she said softly, managing not to blush or stutter. Sirius shrugged.

"Who goes first?" he asked, and she smiled wryly.

"Is that your first question?" she teased, and Sirius let out a bark of laughter.

"Nah, but I guess the answer's me," he said and Adelaide just kept smiling, "so…what's your favorite color?"

"Red," she responded, "What about you? What's your favorite color?" Sirius grinned in a teasing manner,

"What? Can't come up with a better question?" he teased and she blushed, "It's also red." She grinned weakly.

"It's a small world," she remarked, "your turn."

"What's your favorite animal?"

This game continued for ten minutes, with him finding out her favorite animal was a dog (same as his), her middle name was Faye (while his was Orion, after his father), she was a direct descendant of Morgan le Fay (on her mothers side), she hated pink, her favorite food was a tie between Asian, Mexican, and Italian cuisine, and that she excelled at Transfiguration, Charms, Potions, and nonverbal and wandless magic.

"What about your family?" Adelaide asked softly, gnawing on her lip for a second, "I only really know what I've heard, but you can't really trust what people say…you don't have to answer if you don't want too," she added quickly, looking at her feet shyly. Sirius shook his head.

"I don't mind," he said easily, "Well, I have a little brother, as you must know, Regulus Black. He used to look up to me until I left for Hogwarts, when my parents decided to have good old Bella and her husband over for dinner almost every night. Needless to say, he turned into the perfect son rather quickly," he smirked slightly, though it didn't reach his eyes and looked more like a grimace, "I managed to put up with them for a while until I was sixteen; I ran away to James' house and stayed the rest of the summer with him. My dear ol' mum told everyone I had been kicked out.

"During sixth year my Uncle Alphard passed away and left me a large sum of gold and all of is belongings, including his house. I moved in there (despite the Potters protests, mainly coming from Mrs. Potter) and managed to get on without a job. And now, here I am!" he flung his arms out slightly with a cheesy smile, and Adelaide frowned.

"I'm sorry you have an awful family," she said politely, "I couldn't imagine life without having some support from my father."

"What about your mum?" Sirius asked, before wincing, "Sorry, I don't always think before I speak." Adelaide just shook her head.

"It's fine, I don't mind," she said softly. She opened her mouth to speak when the bell rang and everyone began to gather their things. Sirius blinked and did the same, but when he finished he turned back to Adelaide, and they made they way towards the door.

"Hey, if you want we can keep talking when we get back to the common room, or something," he said, trying not to sound to eager, "If you want of course." Adelaide bit her lip again.

"Well, I was planning on going to the library," she said honestly, "But how about lunch?"

"Whatever's fine with you," he shrugged, "But do you want the others hearing or not? Cuz we can set somewhere else if you want…"

"Um, I don't really mind," she murmured, "But I would prefer that I don't tell them; I don't really know them that well." He nodded in understanding, and the two quickly made their way to Herbology, leaving no time for talking if they wanted to have time to find good seats. They ended up separating as they each sat with their own friend, in Adelaide's case near the other Gryffindors who took this class.

"What took you so long?" James asked as Sirius took his seat beside him, Remus on his left and Peter on James' right.

"I decided to hang back and talk to Adelaide some more," he said casually with a shrug. James and Remus shared looks, but Sirius noticed, "What? What'd I miss?"

"Sirius has a cru-ush," James teased with a grin, earning a punch in the shoulder.

"Do not," Sirius said with a playful grin, "she's just interesting."

"As it stands right now," Remus teased, and earned a punch like James.

"Shut your gobs," Sirius said, and the bell rang, "I'm setting with her at lunch today, though." This caused the boys to stare at him as if he had grown a second head.

"But you always sit with us," James said with confusion. Sirius shrugged.

"We didn't get to finish our conversation in Transfiguration, so we're finishing at lunch," he said nonchalantly. James sighed.

"It'll be so weird not setting with you," he said, "But I guess you can ditch us, for a _girl."_ Sirius and Remus laughed at his expense when Professor Sprout, a rather young woman who started teaching at Hogwarts just this year, marched her way into the room with a friendly air about her.

"Welcome to Herbology!"

-

"I have to say that Professor Sprout is a much better teacher then Professor Humdinger was," Sirius remarked to Adelaide as they made their way to the Great Hall side by side for Lunch, "He was a nightmare."

"True," She agreed with a nod of her head, "He was rather foul; Professor Sprout is also closer to our age so she's not as old fashioned as Humdinger was." They entered the Great Hall and were greeted with the noise that accompanied lunch, and they took a seat at the end of the Gryffindor table, closest to the doors. Adelaide sat her things on the bench beside her before placing a few different foods on her plate and Sirius did the same.

"So, what happened to your mum?" Sirius asked softly, only partially noticing when the other Marauders entered the room and took a seat a few spaces down so that they were close, but not close enough to ease drop in on their conversation. Adelaide pushed her food around on her try as she thought for a moment.

"Well, my mother gave birth to me when she was twenty five. She was a wonderful person, I loved her so much," she began, "When I was eight she gave birth to my little sister, Madeline Morgana Vicknair. The birth was really rough on my mom, and she almost didn't make it. When Maddie was two my mother contracted pneumonia, a common muggle disease. She died a few weeks before we were supposed to go on vacation to Romania," she smiled, a slightly bitter gesture, "Needless to say that trip got canceled. I ended up raising my sister when I was able to, but otherwise my dad had to hire a nanny.

"When Maddie was five she was diagnosed with leukemia. By then, my fathers' health was already deteriorating; he had trouble breathing at times and his sense of time was completely off. I could visit him, and the next day he would say that he hadn't seen me in a week," she grimaced, and he waited as she took a drink of her pumpkin juice, "Then he started to forget things. It was barely a month and he didn't remember who Maddie was. He constantly refers to her as 'that little girl', and she's oblivious to it. Whenever I came home for Christmas or Easter during the school year I'd pick up Maddie from St. Mungos and she'd be allowed to stay with us for a while, usually the whole break."

"But if she was in bad condition," Sirius interrupted, "Wouldn't it have been smarter for her to stay in St. Mungos?" Adelaide smiled softly and looked down at her plate.

"I see where you're coming from; I actually think that a lot. Then I remember that she's just a little girl. She needs to spend time with her family, even if one of them doesn't even remember who she is," Adelaide took a bite of her sandwich and Sirius waited patiently as she chased it down with a drink, "Anyway, For Christmas I always end up buying Maddie things and claim they came from Dad so she doesn't think anything is wrong. He just smiles and goes along with whatever I do.

"But what really kills me is whenever my dad goes into a fit," she continued, "at least that's what I call it. He goes through pains that make him fees as if he's being ripped apart from the inside out. If I'm available I go in and sit with him until his nurse, who we hired to live with him when I'm not there, can get him something to stop the pain. He sometimes begins to think that I'm my mom, Elizabeth, and he talks to me as if I'm her. But whenever he remembers that I'm Adelaide, not Elizabeth, he talks about how he wants to go home to Elizabeth and Claude, his brother. He died when dad was very little.

"It's painful to know that all he wants to do is pass on, and I'm selfish enough to try and keep him around a bit longer," her eyes glistened with unshed tears and Sirius waited patiently as she gathered herself again, which didn't take too long, "And whenever I think of just telling everyone to let him go, I think of little Maddie, who loves him so much, and I take it back. So now I try and be there for him as much as I can; I write him every other day, even though I know he probably won't remember it the next day. The nurse says that it helps him, but I doubt it."

"I'm sorry," Sirius said after a pause as she took another drink, "I've never been close to my own family, but I'm close to James' parents and I know it'd be hard on us when they die." Adelaide smiled at him.

"Thank you," she said, "It might not seem like it, but it helps when you have someone to talk too." Sirius shrugged, keeping back a blush, and they began to eat again, this time moving on to a lighter topic.

Sirius was amazed that Adelaide had such a fun personality; while she came off as shy and timid (and possibly very bland), when she started talking she was very vibrant and even sarcastic. She could transition between subjects seamlessly (in case the conversation began heading down a bad path) and knew just what to say half of the time. She was also brutally honest half of the time, and never beat around the bush. He brought this up towards the end of their lunch (really only 30 minutes in, meaning they had an hour and 20 minutes left until classes start);

"You're very blunt, aren't you?" he asked casually before finishing off his roll. She just shrugged and threaded her fingers under her chin.

"I don't like it when people beat around the bush," she said as she watched him finish eating, "I treat you how I want to be treated. When you beat around the bush you get no where and waste time; time is a thing that is very precious and shouldn't be wasted."

"Unless you got a time turner," Sirius joked, "Then you got a whole lot of time on your hands." Adelaide laughed and lowered her hands, crossing them in front of her chest.

"True, true," she agreed, "Which leads to a question: though you go back in time, do you age normal? Because if so then if you went back in time three hours, then that would be three hours off of your life." Sirius stopped mid chew and furrowed his eyebrows.

"That…is really confusing," he said after he swallowed, "I think I'm going to not think about it to spare myself the inevitable headache." She smiled.

"That's a good idea. Now, I'm going to head to the Library to get to work," she said as she shouldered her bag and stood up, "I'll see you in Charms, alright?"

"Bye," he said with a wave, and she nodded before leaving the Hall. Sirius downed his pumpkin juice before standing and moving down to where the others sat, taking his usual spot beside James and across from Remus.

"Well, well, well, look what the cat dragged in," Remus said with a grin, and Sirius snorted.

"As if I'd let a cat drag me anywhere," he responded, earning a round of laughs.

"What did Adelaide have to say?" Peter asked, sounding slightly eager. Sirius shrugged.

"It's not my place to tell," he said, "But we did talk about her family."

"What else?" Peter pushed, and Sirius glared.

"What'd I just say, wormtail?" he asked, "If she wants you to know she'd tell you."

"Lay off, Pads," James said with a mouthful of bread, and he swallowed quickly, "Pete's just curious, that's all. I mean you _did_ ditch us for a girl," he joked and nudged Sirius in the side. Sirius just rolled his eyes, before joining in the conversation.

"So, what'd I miss?"

-

**Disclaimer: **Harry Potter and all things concerning belong to J.K. Rowling. I own Adelaide Vicknair, Vanessa Wolfe, Caryn Gree, Elise Barnes, Madeline Vicknair, Annalisa Bertucci, Professor Sicily and Jean Vicknair.

**A/N: **So this is Chapter two. I have a website for the story posted in my profile, underneat 'How To Get In Contact' and I worked hard on it, so give me your feedback. Its:

theflowerseries[dot]piczo[dot]com.

Please go check it out. And I need to reach ten reveiws to update. Please, I think we can do it!!

Yours truly,  
B.E.N.


	3. A Tricky Treat

**Wallflower**

**Chapter Three: **A Tricky Treat

It had been a month since school started, and Adelaide was surprised to find that while Sirius still talked regularly with her, she had also befriended Lily Evans. It had started when they were paired together in potions. As usually with Adelaide, she had been a blushing mess, but Lily was extremely kind and patient. Now, when Adelaide wasn't talking to Sirius (and on occasion Remus) she was hanging out with Lily.

"James asked me out again," Lily said blandly as they made their way to the Great Hall for supper.

"Isn't that the first time this year?" Adelaide asked curiously, thinking back to the train ride where she promised to put in a good word for him. Lily nodded and adjusted her bag.

"Yeah, it is, but now that he has asked he isn't going to leave me alone," she complained in an exasperated voice.

"He's really not that bad," Adelaide countered, "I sat with him on the train ride here and he was really nice." Lily scoffed.

"We are talking about James Potter, right?" she asked, and when Adelaide nodded she laughed, "James is a pig-headed idiot who takes pleasure in hexing people for no reason."

"But he hasn't done that all year," Adelaide continued as casually as she could, "Usually they do something first, or its on one of his friends. I think that he might have grown up over the summer."

"Whatever helps you sleep at night," Lily said with a shrug as they took their seats towards the end of the table near the doors, and three spaces away from the Marauders in question. Adelaide easily noticed how James watched Lily with a dreamy expression on his face. She offered them a smile before returning to Lily.

"Maybe you should give him a chance," she said softly, "If it doesn't work out, he wouldn't bug you anymore, and if it does…well, then you have a great boyfriend. Besides, he hasn't dated anyone since he set his sights on you, and several good-looking girls have asked him out. I think he really likes you." Lily eyed her in a scrutinizing manner and Adelaide raised an eyebrow.

"You're on his side, aren't you?" Lily asked, causing Adelaide to start in surprise.

"No, but he's a good guy. He'd probably treat anyone he dated like a queen," she said with a shrug. The rest of the dinner they flirted around several different topics, never staying on one for too long, and Lily did a good job at cutting any discussions that could lead to James short. Towards the end of dinner, the sound of McGonagall gently tapping the side of her goblet with her fork caused everyone took look up to the head table, where Dumbledore stood with a smile on his face.

"Good, evening, Students," he said, the twinkle in his eye slightly brighter then usual, "I hope that your food was excellent, as always," he waited as the murmured agreements subsided, "Now, I have an announcement to make concerning Halloween. As some might be aware, there is a muggle tradition to dress up and travel from house to house to get candy. I believe they call it 'Trick-or-Treating'. Upon reading this I decided that we should have our own little tradition.

"On Halloween, we will allow students to traverse around the castle from room to room and receive treats. We will be removing the curfew, and you will be allowed to stay in the corridor up to midnight. Those who have Muggle Studies will then need to bring their candy (or wrappers) to class and receive extra credit," some students began to whisper excitedly, but when they saw the Dumbledore still was not finished, they quickly quieted. Dumbledore just kept smiling as he continued.

"In other news, the first Hogsmeade trip will scheduled for October Twenty Third, and you will find that several stores have stocked up on costumes," he continued, "First and Second Years will be allowed to go to Hogsmeade this one time in order to prepare for Tick-or-Treating."

When the Great Hall was dismissed, Lily latched on to Adelaide's arm with a happy grin.

"Oh, you're going to love this!" She said, "When I was little, I went Trick-or-Treating every Halloween. You get so much candy, and seeing as how this is Hogwarts we'll probably get twice as much as usual!" Adelaide laughed at her friends' excitement and she allowed herself to be lead to the Gryffindor tower and into the dormitories, where Lily began to make a list of what they could go as.

"There are so many different things," she said with a vibrant smile, "you could be a princess, a genie, a hippy…"

"Genie?" Adelaide asked and Lily sighed.

"I forgot you're a pureblood," she said, "We'll have to find something else, then, or else no one will understand what you are." Adelaide smiled apologetically.

"I'm sorry," she apologized, "It's not really my fault." Lily waved her off.

"Oh, I know," she said, "But I guess we'll have to look really hard to find you a costume." Adelaide smiled, though she was wondering why it mattered so much. She didn't dare say this in front of Lily, though.

-

The next day Lily, as well as the other Gryffindor girls, would not stop talking about the 'Trick-or-Treat' celebration. Though Lily was definitely calmer then the other girls, she was also very excited as well. Adelaide found herself hiding away in the library all day, deciding to just stop by the kitchens later as she missed lunch in an attempt to avoid them. She sighed as she took in the silence the Library provided her. Today was sunny, and since it was Saturday most people were outside.

"A-Adelaide?"

She sighed as the timid voice broke through the air, shattering her calm, and she turned to see Peter standing behind her awkwardly, his cheeks tinted pink.

"Yes?" she asked politely. He gulped before speaking,

"I was wondering if maybe you could…you know, tutor me every once in a while," he asked, "I mean, you're really smart and I need help in some of my classes." She smiled kindly and Peter relaxed slightly.

"Sure, no problem," she responded, "I'm going to be free every Saturday, do you want to meet up then? Save for Hogsmeade visits, of course." He smiled with appreciation.

"Thank you," he said, "I'll see you next Saturday, then?" She nodded, and he walked away and headed back towards the common room. Adelaide sighed, and returned back to her book, She sometimes hated her inability to say no to others. I sear It's going to get me killed one of these days, she though humorously before returning her attention back to 'Fantastic Beasts and Where To Find Them' by Newt Scamander. She was currently flipping through in an attempt to find who, or what, she should be for Halloween. She had a feeling that she would be there for a while.

She had just finished an article on Mooncalves when her stomach gurgled loudly, causing her to blush and surreptitiously glance around to make sure no one was in hearing range. Thankfully, no one was, and she took the time to pack up and sneak out of the Library, glancing both ways to make sure that Lily and her friends weren't in sight. When the coast was clear she began walking briskly towards the kitchens. It didn't take long, and thankfully her stomach hadn't gurgled again, and she quickly tickled the pear before slipping in, glancing around to make sure no one saw.

"Look what the cat dragged in,"

Adelaide yelped and spun around to see James and Sirius setting at a round table, Sirius leaning back on two legs of his chair. James grinned, apparently he was the one who spoke, and waved merrily.

"Put in a good word about me to Lily, yet?" he asked, and Adelaide relaxed and smiled at them.

"Yes, but she's pretty hard to sway," she responded, walking over and taking a seat in a chair (that seemingly appeared from no where) across from them, "I've been avoiding the girls though. They keep trying t bounce ideas off of me for the Halloween celebration. Even Caryn is asking me for advice." Both boys raised an eyebrow.

Caryn Gree was a girl you did not want to cross, on good or bad terms. She had a bad superiority complex and found herself better then everyone. She was a Muggleborn, and her mother was apparently a famous model while her father was a rich business man. Since she was an only child, she was a spoiled little brat (putting it nicely). Her voice was very high and she couldn't completely pronounce her 'r' sounds, but for some reason the younger students found it incredibly adorable.

She was also a really bad Pyromaniac. Not just the 'Wow, that fire's pretty' but the 'let's set my mattress of fire and see what happens' kind of pyromaniac. So, sometimes Lily or Adelaide would walk in and find her flicking a muggle lighter on and off. She was extremely thin, and Adelaide wouldn't be surprised if she was ten pounds under weight. She had ash-blond hair to her chin, and dark grey eyes that looked like steel.

"Wow," James said, obviously knowing about her, "Who knew she would care about clothing. I thought she would have set it all on fire." Adelaide barely kept back a smile but she otherwise kept quiet.

"You weren't at lunch today," Sirius remarked, "I' gonna take a wild guess and say that's why you're here?" she grinned.

"You're rather observant, aren't you?" she asked cheekily, before laughing, "Yeah, that's why I'm here." Almost as if they had been listening in (no doubt they were) a house-elf appeared beside her, with a large nose and wide blue eyes.

"Does Miss want Lobby to get Miss something to eat?" he asked, and Adelaide fought the urge to laugh at the unfortunate elves name.

"Um, yes please. Just a sand-" she didn't get to finish as Lobby ran off to search for food, "…wich." Sirius laughed.

"They always do that," he said, "They give you more then you want every time." As he said this, Lobby returned with a trey stacked with all sorts of food, mostly pastries. Adelaide smiled, but it slightly resembled a grimace.

"Do you maybe have some vegetables?" she asked carefully, "Or meat?"

"Of course! Lobby will be right back!" he ran off again, and Adelaide eyes the desserts with a queasy expression.

"Why don't you want pastries?" James asked, "They're really good." Adelaide shook her head.

"I don't have that much of a sweet tooth," she admitted. James and Sirius stared at her as if she were insane, and she blushed. She was distracted, though, as Lobby returned with a large bowl of stew. Adelaide smiled.

"Thank you, Lobby," she said. Lobby blushed, before scurrying off. She blinked, before turning to her soup.

"So, what do you think we should go as for Halloween?" Sirius asked, and she groaned.

"Not you too," she said, causing them to laugh. She sighed, and shrugged, "I don't know what I'm going as, I don't really see how I can help you."

"She's got a point," James said with a sigh, "We're never going to think of anything."

"Never say never," Sirius said, getting a laugh in response.

"Did you know that Peter was having trouble in his classes?" Adelaide asked, taking another bit of her soup. Sirius shrugged.

"He's always been behind in classes," James said, "Normally he comes to one of us for help. Why?"

"He found me in the library and asked me to tutor him," she said, leaning back in her chair, "What I'm wondering is why he didn't ask one of you guys; Remus is really smart, and so are you two. This is the first conversation we've ever had, aside from on the train." Sirius and James just shrugged.

"Who knows what he's planning half of the time," Sirius asked, before sighing. The two stood and began heading towards the doors, "We'll see you later, Adelaide. We're going to go bug Remus into giving us costume ideas." Adelaide laughed and waved.

"See you later."

By the time Adelaide mustered up enough courage to leave the sanctuary that was the Kitchen, she had been there for about an hour and a half. Lobby was sad to see her go, and Adelaide promised to visit whenever she could (Lobby then proceeded to burst into tears, talking about how no one had ever promised him anything). She took her sweet time going back to the common room, all the while thinking about the Halloween celebration.

"Plimpy," she told the Fat Lady as she reached the portrait. She opened dutifully, and Adelaide crawled in only to be attacked by Caryn, Lily, and Elise Barnes. She screamed in surprise, gaining the attention of half the common room, Marauders included. Sirius and James both began laughing, since they knew what was going on, and waved cheekily at her. She felt like crying as the girls herded her up into the dormitory. She sighed, resigning to her fate, and took a seat on her bed.

"Did you come up with any ideas?" Elise asked.

Elise Barnes was generally a very nice girl, if a bit chatty. She never intentionally meant to hurt anyone, but sometimes she didn't think about what she was saying. She also was a bit of a gossip, but not to the extreme. If she ever heard anything that caught her attention she would report it to someone else, unless directly told to keep quiet. She was one of the girls who would never betray your trust and keep your secrets even after you died. She had long black hair and dark blue eyes. She was tall with a busty figure, and a slight belly, but she carried herself well.

"No," Adelaide said, and the girls all began talking at once. She attempted to tune them out, and finally they seemed to all go quiet in an attempt to come up with ideas, "Why don't we just wait until the Hogsmeade visit? Then we can see all of our options and choose then." She offered this hesitantly, and Caryn basically through a fit.

"NO! We need time to get this right!" she insisted, "If we wait that long then all the things will be bought out before we decide! We at least need some guidelines!" Adelaide winced at her volume, but nodded. Then, she had an idea.

"What do you all know about Greek Mythology?"

-

**Disclaimer: **Harry Potter and all things concerning belong to J.K. Rowling. I own Adelaide Vicknair, Vanessa Wolfe, Caryn Gree, Elise Barnes, Madeline Vicknair, Annalisa Bertucci, Professor Sicily and Jean Vicknair.

**A/N:**Here we go, chapter three. I should throw a party ((sarcasm)). You know, I seem kind of dull in my authors notes…I need to be happier. Meh…maybe later. Anyway, standard thing applies: Flame you get called an idiot, please review, etcetera, etcetera.

**IMPORTANT: **The reason I updated before I got ten reveiws, is because I'm going on a criuse so I won't be able to update for a week. (And I already have the first seven chapters written, haha.) So reveiw. I know people are alerting this, I really want your feedback. Even if I get alerts, i don't feel as appriciated if I don't get a reveiw. I like to know what you think! Please reveiw. ((puppy pouts))

Yours truly,  
B.E.N.


	4. Jealousy

**Wallflower**

**Chapter Four: **Jealousy

Adelaide was setting patiently in the common room with Peter, who was hanging on to every word she said as if his life depended on it. She found it endearing, and slightly creepy at the same time. It was their first tutoring session, and Adelaide had a feeling that Peter was just coming up with things to ask her questions about (seeing how inconsistent they were and how elementary some of the spells ended up being) but she didn't want to put him on the spot. Besides, she would look rather snippy if it ended up he really did need help with all of these spells.

"Really, the Confundus Charm is relatively simple," Adelaide explained softly to an eagerly-listening Peter, "The hardest part is making sure you have good aim so you don't accidentally hit another person instead of the intended target, and then there's the example of putting too much force and forcing someone backwards."

"I think I get it," he said, mostly to himself. Adelaide glanced around, and then pointed out a second year who was setting in one of the really comfortable armchairs and dozing off.

"Try it on him," she whispered, "I'll cover for you." Peter blanched, before subtly pointing his wand at him underneath the table.

"_Confundo," _he whispered, and suddenly the student yelped as the chair toppled backwards, causing everyone to look at him. Adelaide blanched.

"What's the cover??" Peter whispered under his breath.

"I don't know, I thought you could do it!" she responded in a whisper. They quickly looked as if they were reading quietly, while the second year looked around with a confused expression.

"What the heck just happened?" He asked loudly.

"Must've been Peeves," a voice offered from behind Adelaide. She turned to see Sirius standing there innocently, though he was eyeing her in amusement.

"Damn poltergeist," the second year murmured, before righting the chair and stomping off to his dormitory. When he left, Sirius plopped down in the empty chair beside Adelaide and watched as the two blushed in shame.

"I'm going to take a wild guess and say that was your fault," he said, cutting straight to the chase.

"It was an accident," Peter murmured.

"He was practicing a Confundus Charm," Adelaide explained. Sirius quirked an eyebrow;

"Didn't you master that in fourth year?" he asked, and Peter looked horrified, but he quickly replaced it with a sheepish smile.

"I-I guess I'm a bit rusty," he said quickly. Adelaide shrugged and closed the book, but Sirius kept watching Peter with a confused expression. Adelaide sighed loudly and stood, before popping her back.

"I think I'm gonna end it there," she said, "You just keep practicing, I'm sure you'll get it eventually."

"R-Right, thanks," Peter murmured, before clumsily gathering his things together. Adelaide watched him leave with a slightly raised eyebrow.

"He's a confusing kid," she said suddenly. Sirius laughed.

"Kid? He's as old as we are," he said, and she shrugged.

"I know, but he doesn't really seem like it," she replied, "There's something about him that makes him seem like a fifth year, though I'm not sure what it is. He's really innocent." Sirius shrugged, and Adelaide began putting her stuff in her bag. Sirius just watched with a bored expression. Adelaide banished her bag to her room and looked over at him, "I'm going head down to lunch; do you wanna come?" As if hearing her question, his stomach gurgled loudly. Adelaide giggled, "I'll take that as a yes."

"Yeah," he responded with a grin, before standing and pushing in his chair. They ignored the glances sent their way as they headed out of the common room, the portrait swinging closed behind them.

"I wonder why I didn't think of using Peeves as an excuse," Adelaide mused aloud, "I guess I was panicked and couldn't think straight." Sirius just grinned.

"The kid probably thinks I did it on purpose any way," he said with a shrug, "I've been known to play a trick or true." Adelaide snorted,

"Even I knew that," she said, "You're _Sirius Black._ A _Marauder. _You've been known to play pranks on unsuspecting victims." Sirius grinned sheepishly.

"Yeah, well, what can I say?" he asked with a shrug.

"A sorry can do wonders," Adelaide countered with a grin. Sirius sighed.

"That was a rhetorical question," he explained. Adelaide kept grinning,

"I know,"

They entered the great hall with grins on their faces and took a seat at the end of the table, in the same places they had at the beginning of the year. They both wasted no time in piling food onto their plates. Sirius glanced up at her, before speaking;

"Do you know if people are getting dates for that Trick-or-Treat thing?" he asked casually. She glanced up at him and swallowed her food.

"I think some people are," she replied truthfully, "Why do you ask?" He shrugged.

"James said he was hoping that Lily would agree to go with him," he said truthfully, "I thought I'd ask and see if many people were getting dates." Adelaide shrugged,

"I think people are mostly hanging out with their friends, and if they already are dating someone then they go with them," she continued, "I think people just want to hang out with people they know they're going to have a good time with. I have to say that I agree," she ended in a humorous tone. He grinned, and they changed the subject to transfiguration. They joked around for a few minutes, mostly about the confounding incident, when James and Remus entered the Hall. Remus pointed the two out to James, who grinned, and then they headed over.

"What's up?" James asked as he took a seat beside Sirius, Remus (who looked rather pale) setting beside Adelaide and across from James.

"Not much," Adelaide responded with a shrug before taking a drink. James grinned.

"So, I hear that a second year was attacked by Peeves in the common room not too long ago," he said casually, and Adelaide began to choke on her juice. Remus patted her on the back with a worried expression, while Sirius was fighting back a grin. Adelaide waved her hand, her other clutching the base of her throat.

"I'm fine," she rasped, coughing a bit more, "I'm fine."

"I'm going to take a guess and say that you had something to do with that," Remus said with a raised eyebrow. She blushed.

"I was tutoring Peter, and he tried to confound him," she murmured, "Sirius came up with a cover for what happened." James quirked an eyebrow,

"I thought Pete mastered that in fourth year," he said, Remus silently agreeing.

"He said he was a bit rusty," Adelaide defended, "I don't think that Peter needs to confund someone on a daily basis." The others agreed, but Remus and James shared looks that the other two didn't notice.

"Do you think that maybe Peter's just trying to get close to you?" James asked her bluntly. Adelaide (and Sirius) jerked her head up and stared at James as if he'd drown a third arm.

"What?" she asked, Sirius thinking the same thing, "Why would he do that? I barely know him." Sirius, on the other hand, was pondering over his friends recent actions (recent meaning from the train ride till now) and piecing it all together in his head.

"You don't have to know someone to have a crush on them," Remus said, but that was the last thing Sirius really heard.

Peter, have a crush on Adelaide? For some reason that didn't sit well with him, and made him feel as if someone had dumped ice water on him (and it wasn't because of a ghost). He felt as if something was trying to fight his way out of his chest, but he had no idea what it was. He pushed it to the side and focused back in on the conversation.

"-no way that he fancies me," Adelaide was saying, "I barely know him, and I've only had three conversations with him."

"The heart is a mysterious thing," Remus said, though he was only kidding, "I mean, James hasn't had one full, civilized conversation with Lily, and he absolutely adores her." James nodded in agreement. Adelaide just stared between the two of them, her mind not quite able to wrap around the idea of Peter, Peter Pettigrew, fancying her.

"I just can't picture it," she said after a moment, "Peter…and me? I can't imagine me dating him, let alone fancying him. He's so shy half of the time-"

"Peter? Shy?" James asked, before laughing, "That settles it then, he fancies the pants off of you." Adelaide just stared blankly, her mouth hanging open. She shook her head.

"No way,' she murmured. James grinned.

"A galleon says he asks her to be his date for Halloween," he said to Remus and Sirius. Sirius shook his head.

"I'm not going in on this one," he said, "It's a fifty-fifty chance." Remus returned his gaze to James.

"He's to shy," he said, before shaking James outstretched hand, "You got a deal." Adelaide looked at the two incredulously and made a sound in the back of her throat.

"You're taking a bet?" she asked, her voice a bit higher then normal, "What is wrong with you two?"

"Would you turn him down?" James asked seriously. Adelaide's mouth opened and closed for a second, before she sighed and slumped in defeat.

"No," she said softly, "I wouldn't want to hurt his feelings. I mean, he just seems to self-conscious and shy; it'd be like kicking a puppy."

"Oi, Sirius, you're awfully quiet," Remus said, "Are you okay?"

"Yeah, fine," he said before he began eating again.

He didn't like the idea of Adelaide going out with Peter. There was just something wrong in that mental image –they were polar opposites. He was short and chubby, not to terribly attractive, and Adelaide was taller and thinner; not Caryn thin, but healthy thin. He was just the opposite of Adelaide in every way he could imagine, even personality wise. Peter was gullible over eighty percent of the time, while Adelaide was always doubting everything (though on occasions she could be rather gullible). It didn't fit together.

The feeling reemerged in his chest at the mental image of Adelaide and Peter. It almost made him sick to his stomach. He still couldn't place it, but he decided that for his own sake he would stop thinking about it. So, he put on a grin and rejoined the conversation, which had switched over to how James could ask Lily out for Halloween. Even as he tried to help, though, his mid would occasionally stray to the image of Peter and Adelaide. It was as if it had been burned into the back on his eyelids.

-

"I'm going Trick-or-Treating with James Potter,"

Adelaide glanced up from her book and stared at Lily as she entered their dormitory. They were the only ones there, thank god, and Adelaide had just finished up her Transfiguration homework (she loved free periods). It had been almost two weeks since she had her first tutoring session with Peter, and last Saturday she had excused herself, claiming that she was getting behind on her own homework. This weekend was the Hogsmeade trip as well, when the girls would have to scurry to get the things for their costumes.

"You agreed?" Adelaide asked, closing her book and mentally congratulating James. Lily nodded, in a trance of sorts, and took a seat at the end of Adelaide's bed, "What made you agree?"

"Well, as you know he hasn't asked me out since the first of the month," she said, "And today, after I left the Hall for lunch, he followed me. He looked really sincere and wasn't at all arrogant when he asked me. If I said no, it'd be like kicking a puppy." Adelaide felt her lips quirk up: that was what she had said about Peter.

"But you've turned him down before," She continued. Lily sighed.

"I know, but I remembered what you said about him," she explained, "You said he was a really nice guy, and so…I thought that maybe I should give him a chance. If it doesn't work out then oh well, and if it does," she shrugged, "Then I guess I have a boyfriend." Adelaide smiled.

"I don't think you'll regret it," she said honestly, "He'll treat you like a queen." Lily smiled slightly, before mock glaring at her.

"HE better, or else I'm taking it out on you," she threatened, and the two laughed. Lily sighed and leaned back on her hands.

"Why didn't you come immediately back to the common room?" Adelaide asked, "Lunch was over a while ago, and now free period is almost over." Lily shrugged.

"I took a walk," she admitted, "I was trying to sort out my thoughts; I hung out by the lake for a while." Adelaide nodded, before grinning.

"Well, if you had come up I would have helped you with our transfiguration essay; I finished it ten minutes ago." Lily looked at her incredulously.

"Seriously?" she asked, "Wow. I need to hang out with you more often. Now I'm going to be spending tonight finishing it while you get to go hang out with friends." Lily grimaced and Adelaide smiled sympathetically.

"I could stay up here and help you," she offered, before glancing at her watch, "Come on, we can start heading down to Defense now." The two stood and grabbed their bags, Lily grumbling half-heartedly about how she had just dropped it, and made their way out of the dorm and into the common room, where people were working on their own homework, some more rushed then others.

When they reached the classroom, Professor Sicily had just finished setting up the portable dueling stage. Adelaide groaned, gaining her professors attention.

"Ms. Vicknair, Ms Evans!" she said with a grin, her dark blue hair bouncing as she stepped towards them, "You two are early today."

"Yeah," Lily responded with a smile, "We decided to go ahead and head down since we had nothing better to do." Sicily nodded, and grinned, her teeth rather sharp and dangerous looking.

"Well, then I guess you already know what we're doing today," she responded.

"Dueling," Adelaide answered, and Professor Sicily winked.

"Right-o," she responded, "You'll each be dueling your partners." Lily and Adelaide both groaned for very good reasons. Lily had been paired up with James, and Adelaide had been paired up with Sirius. They shared looks, before moving to their seats; Adelaide to the middle desk in the fourth row, and Lily to the last desk in the third row. It was barely five minutes later when the bell rang and students began entering the classroom. When Sirius came in, he spotted the stage and then took his seat beside Adelaide.

"I'm guessing we're dueling?" he said easily. Adelaide nodded.

"We're dueling our partners," she said, glancing at him with a confidant smirk, "You better not go easy on me."

"I wouldn't dream of it," he retorted smoothly. The final bell rang, and Sicily easily gained everyone's attentions.

"Alright, everybody!" she barked, "Today we're dueling out partners. We're starting in the back and working out way up! Parker, Stevens, you're up!" Adelaide barely stopped herself from groaning aloud; she was next.

Unfortunately, the match didn't last long with Parker disarming Stevens first thing. Sicily sighed softly, obviously wanting to see something more 'entertaining' before nodding and allowing them to leave.

"Alright!" She barked, hefting herself up onto her desk, "Black, Vicknair, get moving!" Adelaide groaned a bit, and Sirius grinned.

"Want me to go easy on you?" he asked, and Adelaide smirked.

"If you wanna loose," she responded. They made their way to the stage, and bowed, "Good luck," she whispered, before they snapped around and walked five spaces towards the opposite ends of the stage. Adelaide took a deep breath, and whirled around quickly.

"_Everte Statum!"_ she called, and Sirius was blown backwards and landed on his side painfully with a grunt. He quickly got back up and before she even opened her mouth, he had sent a spell hurtling towards her.

"_Impedimentia!"_ Adelaide was forced backwards, but she managed to keep her footing. She glared determinedly and soon, spells were being hurtled at alarming rates between the two, each time with the other countering them in some way, either by dodging or use of a shield charm. It was pushing five minutes in, and everyone was watching with awe.

"Getting tired yet?" Adelaide mocked from her position, before hurtling another curse towards him, which he sidestepped at the last moment.

"You wish," he returned, but as he moved to send another spell her way, she moved quickly and silently, pointing at him. Misinterpreting her movement for a shield, he was surprised as his wand flew out of his hands and Adelaide caught it with a smirk.

"Excellent job!" Professor Sicily said with a slightly crazed grin, "That's more like it!! Twenty points for Gryffindor!" Adelaide grinned cheekily before handing him back his wand.

"You did well," she said as they headed to their seats. Sirius grinned.

"I guess I could say the same thing for you," he returned.

By the end of class, James had gotten totaled by Lily (Adelaide claiming she was getting out her excess stress), Remus had politely beaten Vanessa Wolfe, and Peter had gotten his ass handed to him by Annalisa Bertucci, gaining ten points for Slytherin. When the bell rang, Professor Sicily had assigned a six foot essay on the importance of nonverbal spells. Adelaide and Sirius, though, were exempt for their use of multiple nonverbal spells.

"A-Adelaide?" Peter asked as she passed his desk. He was blushing and sweating a bit, and Adelaide stopped to turn and look at him.

"Yeah?" she asked politely. He gulped,

"W-Well, I was wondering if you maybe wanted to be my date for Halloween," he said quietly. Adelaide started in surprised; Peter had asked her out. She went into a mental panic, before smiling politely (if a bit warily) and giving a short nod of her head.

"Ok," she consented, mentally wondering why she had to be so nice. Peter relaxed and smiled like a child on Christmas.

"I-I'll meet you in the common room at five-thirty, okay?" he asked. Adelaide just kept smiling and nodded, and Peter practically skipped off.

While this was going on, the monster in Sirius' chest had reared his ugly head and began to tear at his throat and gut like a raging manticore. He clenched his fists, his nails digging into his skin, and from the corner of his eye he saw Remus hand James a gallon with an amazed look on his face. Sirius frowned before walking off, leaving them behind; if he stood there for one more moment, he was sure he would lash out at someone.

"Where are you going?" Adelaide asked in surprise. He didn't glance over his shoulder and simply called out, "Library," and kept walking. When he turned around the corner, he took off at a sprint. It took ten minutes for him to reach the ground, and when he was in the shadow of the castle, he transformed into a large black dog and began to run through the grounds as he tried to sort out his thoughts. He barely recognized the emotion that was still coursing through his veins.

Sirius Black was jealous of Peter Pettigrew.

-

**Disclaimer: **Harry Potter and all things concerning belong to J.K. Rowling. I own Adelaide Vicknair, Vanessa Wolfe, Caryn Gree, Elise Barnes, Madeline Vicknair, Annalisa Bertucci, Professor Sicily and Jean Vicknair.

**A/N:** I made up the Confunding stuff; I have no idea what happens if you do it incorrectly, I just thought it would be funny. And Good news is that my vacation was great, bad news is my luggage is still in San Juan. Greeeeaaaat.

Yours truly,  
B.E.N.


	5. Getting The Costumes

**Wallflower**

**Chapter Five: **Getting The Costumes

"Wake up!"

"Go away," Sirius murmured into his (comfortable) pillow. He grunted as James poked him angrily in the side.

"We're going to Hogsmeade today! The first Hogsmeade trip of the year!!" he continued, poking Sirius even harder.

"Fine!" Sirius snarled angrily, before pushing James out of his way and stalking off to the bathroom. James watched with raised eyebrows, before he seemed to piece something together in his mind.

"Oh, I get it," he said with a grin, at this moment glad Peter had left for breakfast already. He stood outside the door, which had slammed shut in his face, "You're jealous!"

"What the hell are you talking about?" Sirius asked, yanking the door open to glare at him. James was grinning like a madman.

"You're jealous that Peter is taking Adelaide to the Halloween thing!" he said, crossing his arms proudly at his deduction skills. Sirius snorted, closing the door again and hiding a blush.

"No I'm not," he retorted, "Now leave me the hell alone so I can take a shower!"

"He's pissed," James said with a nod, "He never takes a shower at seven in the morning on weekends." Remus glanced up from his book with a slight smile.

"It's very odd how you know these things about him," he said and James mock glared, before digging in his trunk for some clothes. When Sirius reemerged from the bathroom, steam poured out from behind him; he was still glaring.

"Cheer up, mate! You've been like this since Wednesday!" James said from his new spot on his bed, "And besides, you get to see Adelaide today before it's too late!! She isn't Pete's, yet, Padfoot old pal!"

"Shut up," Sirius grumbled before drying his hair with his towel, "I do not have a crush on Adelaide." Remus sighed softly before putting away his book and heading to the common room.

"I'm going to go to breakfast," he said, "When you two grow up come and join me." He kept walking, and James watched as Sirius kicked his bag out of the way.

"I'm going with Remus," he said after a second, "Join us when you feel better, alright?" He didn't wait for a response as he jogged down the stairs and into the common room. Sirius sat up there for a few minutes, before sighing and heading slowly down stairs. He glanced up and was surprised to see that Adelaide had come down stairs at the same time. She smiled at him and walked over, while he stood with his hands deep in his pockets.

"Hey!" she said happily, "You heading down to breakfast too?" He shrugged.

"I was thinking about it," He replied, "It's either that of the kitchens, but the elves are probably all busy." Adelaide nodded.

"Then I'll just walk with you to the Hall," she said. He said nothing as he started walking, Adelaide easily keeping pace. The walk was mostly silent, and when they reached the great hall he frowned when he saw Peter setting with James and Remus, smiling like a madman.

"I'm going to set with Lily today," Adelaide said, glancing in the same direction. Sirius noticed.

"You don't want to go with him, do you?" he asked, his voice slightly hopeful; luckily, Adelaide missed it. She shook her head.

"No, he's really not my type," she said softly, surreptitiously glancing at him as she said that, "but I didn't want to hurt his feelings." Sirius grunted, and they grew closer to the table; their pace had slowed considerably.

"You might hurt him more, though, if you lead him on like this," Sirius said without thinking. She whipped his head over and looked at him with wide eyes.

"I'm not leading him on!" she whispered harshly, "It's just one date; it's not like I agreed to marry him!" Sirius shrugged but picked up the pace and sat beside James, and as far away from Peter as possible. Adelaide glared at his back before huffing over to sit with Lily, Caryn, and Elise.

"What's up with you?" Caryn asked, before taking a bite of eggs.

"Men are idiots," she murmured in response as she piled food onto her plate, "All of them." Caryn lifted her drink slightly.

"Here, here." She responded, before taking a large drink.

"Did I tell you I can't go to Hogsmeade today?" Elise asked. Adelaide shook her head, and she continued, "Oh. Well, I hexed Parker in the hallway for trying to grope me. They caught me and not him," she grinned, "He's in the hospital wing now, covered in painful boils." Adelaide shook her head.

"I need to learn to hex people without regret," she murmured, "I'm sure it'd help with all my anger." The girls laughed.

"Anyway," Lily said, "What about you Caryn?" She shook her head.

"I've also got a detention for 'disturbing the peace'." She said in a mocking tone.

"What did you do?" Elise asked.

"I was snogging Parkers in the Charms classroom," she said nonchalantly, "They caught him with his hand up my shirt." Adelaide glanced down at her food, unable to look her in the face.

"Parkers a slut," Elise said angrily, now stabbing at her food.

"So, I guess it's just you and me, then," Lily said. Adelaide nodded,

"I guess it is. At least we have ideas as to who we're going as though." Lily smiled and nodded.

"that's going to make it much easier," she glanced at the two, "Do you want us to get your costumes for you?"

"If it isn't too much trouble," Elise responded, "You know our sizes, right?" Lily nodded and drank from her goblet,

"I can't wait," she said with a smile, "This is going to be so much fun."

"If you get a good date, that is," Caryn quipped, glancing at Adelaide pointedly. She just ignored her and continued pushing food around on her plate.

"Do you think I'm leading him on by agreeing to be his date?" She asked the girls softly.

"No." Elise and Lily said, while Caryn said, "Yes." Caryn took the chance to elaborate.

"By agreeing to go out with him once, he'll think you'll want to go out with him again. When he does ask you out again, he'll expect you to say yes. And knowing you farley well, that means you will say yes even though you have no feelings for him other then friendship." Adelaide groaned when she realized that Caryn had a point.

"What do I do?" she asked, propping her head up with her hands. Caryn shrugged.

"That's on you." She responded, before standing, "Well, I have a date in a broom closet with Stevens. I'll see you girls later." Lily was quiet until she was out of hearing range.

"You aren't going to listen to _Caryn, _are you?" she asked, and Adelaide shrugged, but otherwise kept quiet. Lily sighed, but struck up a conversation with Elise instead of pressuring her. Adelaide frowned, and glanced down the table to where the boys were setting. Sirius was watching her, while the others chatted obliviously. Adelaide jerked her head towards the doors, and he raised an eyebrow. She nodded, and he seemed to get the message. Adelaide stood, and after telling Lily she had left her money in the common room, left the great hall. She waited for a moment before Sirius walked through the doors and they both began to head slowly towards the common room.

"What's up?" he asked casually, watching her from the corner of his eyes.

"I am leading Peter on," she said sadly, twisting her hands in front of her, "What do I do? How do I let him down gently?" Sirius raised both his eyebrows.

"Why ask me?" he asked curiously.

"Because you're his friend, you know him inside out," she offered, "and you were the one who made me realize that I was leading him on." He shrugged.

"Just say you don't think of him like that," he said casually, "Go with him any way, but afterwards say that you had a good time as friends. Compliment him, it might soften the blow." She groaned, and cradled her head in her hands, pressing her palms into her eyes.

"Is there any way to do it without him getting hurt?" she asked desperately. Sirius was silent for a second before shaking his head.

"No, I don't think so," he said truthfully, "He's never gotten the nerve to ask someone out before." Adelaide groaned again, dropping her hands and looking at him with a pathetic expression,

"Are you serious?" she asked, and his lip twitched slightly.

"I'm always Sirius," he said before getting serious (excuse the pun) again, "But yeah, he hasn't asked a girl out before."

"Oh god," she groaned, "Kill me now."

-

"Do they have anything here?" Lily asked as she pressed her face against the window of a store. Adelaide came up beside her and did the same, before shaking her head.

"No, they don't," she said with a frown, "It's easy to find a devil and an angel costume, but try and find some based on Greek mythology and you're screwed." Lilly nodded and they both sighed as they stepped away from the glass in defeat.

"Maybe we should change our costume ideas," Lily said sadly, switching one of their bags to the other hand, "We should go back to that one shop and get our costumes there; we could be fairies." They both grimaced as they remembered how gaudy the costumes were.

"No, theres a few more stores up…ahead…wait a second, we're witches!" Adelaide said with wide eyes. Lily looked at her with a raised eyebrow.

"Did you just realize that?" she asked, but Adelaide shushed her.

"We can use magic!" she said with a wide smile, "That means as long as we get something similar to what we had in mind, then we can transfigure them to be what we want! Why didn't we see it before?" Lily's eyes widened and she smacked herself with the palm of her hand.

"We're idiots, aren't we?" she asked and Adelaide nodded.

"But it's ok!" she said quickly, "C'mon, lets go," and before lily could say another word, Adelaide had grabbed her hand and drug her off to the more expensive section of tow, which was rather desolate.

"Why are we here?" Lily asked softly, as if scarred to disturb the peace.

"Because we're going as goddesses," Adelaide informed in an equally soft voice, "If we can get basics we're good." She then steered them into an older looking shop, which was revealed to be home to hundreds of elegant dresses. The clerk, a rather small elderly woman, appeared in front of them immediately.

"Welcome!" She said happily, "How may I help you young ladies?" Adelaide smiled and pulled out a brief sketch from her back pocket and handed it to the woman.

"Well, this is what I'm going to be for the Halloween celebration in Hogwarts," she said, "And I can handle the minor details like the flowers and the headdress, but I need a dress." The clerk analyzed the picture carefully before nodding.

"Yes, I think I have just the thing," she said, "Hold on a moment." The woman disappeared again, and Adelaide smiled at Lily.

"I told you," she said happily, "We we're just looking in all the wrong places." Lily hummed in agreement before pulling out a sketch from her back pocket, eyeing it closely.

"You're pretty good at drawing," she commented, and Adelaide blushed.

"When I was little I wanted to be a designer," she said sheepishly, "I just kept practicing."

"Here we are," the clerk said, reappearing as suddenly as she had left. In her arms was an elegant green dress that around their ankles, and looked like it would cling to her body easily. It had a slit up the right side that reached mid thigh. The body of the dress was a corset with black lacing up the back. Adelaide looked at it carefully, before nodding.

"This is wonderful," she said with a smile, "How much is it?"

"Twenty galleons," she said, and while Adelaide's smile tightened, she nodded before grabbing the other image from Lily, who looked like she was about to protest.

"I also need something along these lines," she said, handing her the paper. The woman took it, looking at it closely over her glasses, before she nodded.

"I'll be right back," and she disappeared.

"That's fairly expensive," Lily said softly, eyeing her friend nervously. She just shrugged in response.

"I'll wear it again," she said nonchalantly, "I have enough money." Lily bit her lip, but when she opened her mouth to complain the woman appeared again, this time with a red strapless dress. The body was clingy, while the length of the dress overlapped itself and was hiked up in some places. It too reached about their ankles, and around the top of the dress was a silver chain that they assumed was supposed to go around the neck.

"It's perfect," Adelaide said in awe, "How much is this?"

"Twenty-five galleons," the woman said. Lily shook her head.

"I can't ask you to pay for both of them!" she said to Adelaide, who just shook her head.

"I've got enough," she said again before facing the woman, "I'm going to assume you went ahead and got the right sizes?" the woman smiled bashfully.

"Yes, Miss Vicknair," she replied, "You're both the same size, and I've fitted you enough over the years to know what size you are." Lily glanced between the two, surprise barely concealed. Adelaide just kept smiling.

"That'll be all to day, Mrs. Jane," she said, and the woman nodded before making her way to the counter where she carefully bagged the dresses. Adelaide handed over her money, and then the two left the store quickly.

"How does she know you by name?" Lily asked curiously. Adelaide sighed softly.

"Let's stop by the Three Broomsticks, hm?" she offered, "I'll explain there." Lily pursed her lips but nodded all the same, and it didn't take long for them to reach the crowded building. Lily looked around warily as they took a seat in a booth near the back.

"Isn't it a bit crowded?" Lily asked, "Someone might over hear," Adelaide waved her off.

"The louder it is, the harder it is to spy," she said simply, "Now, I'll got get us something to drink, you wait here." She stood before Lily could protest and reached the bar. She didn't wait long when a young waiter came up; apparently Madame Rosemerta needed some extra hands today.

"Can I have two butterbeers?" she asked politely. The boy nodded and moved quickly, when she heard a chuckle from beside her.

"Shopping for costumes must be hard work," Sirius said, and Adelaide was amazed she hadn't recognized him immediately.

"Nah, one of these are for Lily," she said, and James perked up from Sirius' other side. Adelaide was relieved to see that Peter wasn't around.

"Lily's here?" he asked eagerly, and Adelaide sighed.

"Yes, but we were getting ready to have a conversation," she said, before the boy handed her two glasses, filled to the rim, "Thanks," she murmured, before grabbing them and heading to the table, quite aware that the two were following her. Lily opened her mouth when she saw her, before snapping it closed when she saw her present company.

"What're you two doing here?" she asked, and Adelaide sat down the drinks.

"It's fine, Lily," she said dismissively, "I don't particularly care if they know, it's people I don't trust who I don't want finding out." Lily pursed her lips again, but nodded. James took this as a good sign and slid in beside her, while Sirius sat beside Adelaide.

"So, how do have that much money, and how did that lady know you?" Lily asked, cutting to the chase. Adelaide put down her drink, though she didn't let go of it.

"My father, when he was healthy, was an auror. A damn good one, if I do say so my self. He made quite a bit of money, and not only that, but he inherited a small fortune from his parents (he was an only child). My mother came from a very wealthy family, and when her parents passed all of their money went to her. In muggle terms, that made her a billionaire. So, for holidays and birthdays my mother would take me down to Mrs. Janes dress shop for the parties she would throw every holiday, and sometimes for no reason at all. After she died, her money (which had doubled since she got it) went to me and my little sister.

"My fathers money is now mine as well, and it's my mothers old money that is paying for all the hospital bills and school supplies." She finished, "If word got around that I had enough money to by an entire city, well, I'd be pretty popular." She smiled, "I rather like being under the radar."

"Wow," Lily said with wide eyes, "Does this mean you'll pay for my wedding?" Adelaide laughed merrily, and winked.

"Maybe I will, maybe I won't," she teased, "How about we make a deal; you marry James, and I pay for your wedding." Lily and James began sputtering, causing Adelaide and Sirius to laugh.

"I'll take that as a yes," she said with a grin, before downing the rest of her butterbeer, "Is Peter here with you guys?" James shook his head.

"No, he decided to stay behind so he can catch up on his homework," he explained, and Adelaide smiled brightly.

"Then how about you guys hang out with us?" she asked. Sirius shrugged while James grinned and agreed eagerly.

The rest of the trip they spent going to different stores and buying different things, from pranks to sweets. The girls even managed to persuade Sirius and James to wait on them while they went into a fabric store really quick. They came out with some green fabric that matched Adelaide's dress and some golden sheer material to go with Lily's dress. While they managed to keep their costumes a secret from the boys, they did bug them incessantly for the better part of an hour.

When they go back to Hogwarts, they were all dead on their feet but laughing all the same. Lily and James ended up collapsing beside each other on the coach, and when Adelaide saw Peter she dashed upstairs with a barely uttered goodbye. Sirius grimaced at his approach, and decided to go upstairs as well; he didn't want to have to listen to Peter go on about how much he adored Adelaide.

"Hey," Remus greeted as Sirius entered the room, and he just offered a half-dead grunt in response before collapsing on his bed, face down into his pillow. Remus chuckled before closing his book and heading downstairs to allow him some alone time. Sirius didn't move from his spot as he turned his head to face the wall with half-lidded eyes.

"Stupid Peter," he murmured, before falling into a restless sleep.

-

**Disclaimer: **Harry Potter and all things concerning belong to J.K. Rowling. I own Adelaide Vicknair, Vanessa Wolfe, Caryn Gree, Elise Barnes, Madeline Vicknair, Annalisa Bertucci, Professor Sicily and Jean Vicknair.

**A/N:** And there is chapter Five! Kudos to anyone who can guess correctly at who Lily and Adelaide are going as. Oh, and 20 galleons is equivalent to 147 USD or 100 pounds while 25 galleons is equivalent to 183.75 USD or 125 pounds; I know, I used the internet ((grin)).

Yours truly,  
B.E.N.


	6. Trapped in a Broom Closet

**Wallflower**

**Chapter Six: **Trapped in a Broom Closet

Adelaide awoke to Lily jumping on her bed eagerly, grinning like a mad woman, and screaming at the top of her lungs, "IT'S HALLOWEEN, IT'S HALLOWEEN!! GET YOU FAT BUTT UP!!" Adelaide just groaned and turned her head to look at the clock to see it was half past one. She shot up with wide eyes, and watched as Lily tilted her head curiously.

"It's one o'clock!" she said loudly. Lily smiled sheepishly.

"Well, I thought that you would want to sleep in because you stayed up so late yesterday," she said innocently. Adelaide felt her eyebrow twitch in annoyance.

"You know how I hate getting up past noon!" she said angrily, "The latest I like getting up is noon, and I'd much rather wake up at ten o'clock. Now I feel like I wasted half of the day away!!" She sighed before leaping out of bed and hurrying to the bathroom, "I'm taking a shower. I'll be out in a bit."

"OK!" Lily called back, but the door had already slammed shut. She sighed, "See if I wake you up next time; I'll let you sleep till three!"

"Like hell you will!" Adelaide called through the door, before turning on the shower with a frown. As she stepped under the spray, he frown faded away and she relaxed as the hot water poured down on her. She sighed blissfully and just stood there for a moment, before slowly grabbing her shampoo.

When she stepped out of the shower the mirror had fogged up, to her annoyance. She cleared it quickly, before switching into a fresh set of clothes; a pair of denim shorts and a white tee shirt. When she exited the bathroom, Lily was sitting cross-legged on the bed with a frown etched deeply into her face.

"What happened to your ten minute shower?" she asked, "That one was half an hour long!" Adelaide shrugged with a smile.

"I feel that I deserved that shower," she said simply. Lily kept frowning, though she was just kidding around.

"So, how are we going to pass the time away?" Lily asked, before finally relaxing and leaning back on her hands. Adelaide shrugged before joining her on the bed, falling back onto her back with her arms crossed under her head.

"We can...we can…go get something to eat? Lunch is over now," She offered, though she wasn't really that hungry.

"We can start getting out costumes together," Lily offered, "Not getting them on, but start putting them together and transfiguring all the details." Adelaide nodded with a sigh.

"I guess you're right," she murmured, before setting up and getting the dresses and the fabric from out of the closet, where they hung innocently.

"You're fabric is fine," Adelaide explained as she laid it beside the red dress, "It's just a shawl after all. You can go a head and conjure up a red flower for your hair, and if you can think of anything, just do it." With a nod from Lily, Adelaide turned back to her dress, brandishing her wand like a weapon. She hummed lightly as she transfigures the fabric, mainly just changing its shape. Now it had a long sleeve for one arm, and the rest of the fabric would hang off of her, covering half of her body. With a bit of tinkering, she finally decided on a shape before she snatched up a several galleons from inside her nightstand.

"What're you doing?" Lily asked, already finished with hers.

"I'm going to transfigure these," she showed off the galleons, "Into jewelry." To illustrate her point, she transfigured the galleon into a golden headdress with small floral designs carved into it. She sat that to the side, before she ended transfiguring up a bracelet that covered half of her forearm and had the same floral design, and then a large golden belt that would cling loosely to her hips. She nodded in satisfaction, before she began to conjure up some flowers, and sat them beside the dress. Both girls looked at each other.

"Well, that took about thirty minutes," Lily said slowly, and both girls sighed.

"We need to pass the time," Adelaide said with a frown, "What can we do?"

"Are you hungry yet?" Lily asked, "We can go get some food from the kitchens." Adelaide sighed and placed her hands on her hips.

"Do you think I could get a house elf to come up here and bring food?" she asked, looking at Lily dejectedly. Lily raised an eyebrow.

"Still trying to avoid Peter?" she asked, and Adelaide nodded slowly and shamefully. She groaned loudly and ran her hands down her face.

"I mean, he's a good guy and all, but I don't want to lead him on!" she said helplessly, "I feel that by agreeing to go with him, I've signed my death certificate! He's so fragile half the time, and his self esteem is already shot to hell. What the hell will this do to him!" Lily placed a hand on her friends shoulder.

"Don't panic," she said softly, "I'm sure it's not the first time he's been rejected."

"But it is!" Adelaide cried, and she honestly felt like she would start crying, "James and Sirius confirmed it!" Actually, she couldn't really remember if they had directly confirmed it, but she didn't focus on that right now. Besides, if he was so shy about asking her to help him in classes, how shy would he get around another girl?

"Well, it won't be the last time," Lily said awkwardly, before sighing, "I can't really help you here, so how about we try out your house-elf idea?" Adelaide sniffled dramatically, before nodding.

"Okay," she murmured, before awkwardly clearing her throat, "Um…Lobby? Can you come here?"

There was a pop, and Lobby appeared in front of them with a large smile and wide innocent eyes.

"Miss Adelaide!" he squeaked, "Lobby is so happy to see Miss Adelaide! What can Lobby do?" Adelaide smiled, not bothering trying to find out when he found out her name.

"Could you please get us two bowls of stew and some bread?" She asked, and Lobby nodded quickly.

"Of course! Lobby will be right back!!"

They spent the next hour with Lobby, who was surprisingly fun to hang out with. He seemed to adore Adelaide and always agreed with her (even if she said the sky was green, she was sure that the little elf would believe her). Eventually, four o'clock rolled around and they finally dismissed Lobby (who seemed disappointed at having to leave, but did so all the same) and began to get ready.

"Hey, where are Caryn and Elise?" Adelaide asked suddenly, only now realizing their absence.

"I think they're hanging out in the Ravenclaw dorm with Vanessa Wolfe," Lily replied with a shrug, "They took their stuff with them. Apparently, we're too boring." Adelaide shrugged, before pushing Lily down into a chair.

"This shouldn't take too long," she instructed, before using her wand and carefully molding her hair, keeping it in place with bobby pins and hairspray (she loved being a witch, sometimes). Soon, she looked like the goddess she was meant to be. After Adelaide carefully placed the red flower on the side of her friend's hair, Lily stood and took her place. She put her hair in a bundle of sorts on top of her head, before placing the crown perfectly so that her bangs (which couldn't really be considered bangs) swooped out of her eyes and behind her ear. Her hair took longer, since she had more flowers to twist in.

Finally, Five o'clock came and they were getting into their dresses carefully. As Adelaide had expected, her own dress clung to her legs; if it weren't for the slit she would have had trouble walking. She slid the cover over her, adorned her jewelry (the belt actually underneath the slip, and still visible on her right side). After wrapping some of the flowers she had conjured around her arm, she smiled in success before looking over at Lily, who looked absolutely stunning.

"We're not wearing shoes," she reminded, and Lily smiled.

"Just one more touch, though," she said, before murmuring a quick spell aimed towards her feet. She began walking, and where she stepped flowers sprouted from the ground, but disappeared moments later. Adelaide grinned widely.

"Wicked," she said, "You're the best Persephone I've had the pleasure of seeing." Lily laughed, and the clock switched form five twenty-nine to five thirty. Adelaide sighed, and suddenly her good mood vanished. Lily noticed, and patted her on the back.

"Don't worry," she said happily, "You look wonderful."

"I wish I felt wonderful," Adelaide murmured, before headlining to the stairs. She managed to put a smile on my face, but she relaxed when she saw Peter wasn't in the room yet. She began to get annoyed, though, as the minutes passed and Peter still hadn't shown up. It was Five fifty when he finally appeared, with the other Marauders following behind.

"You're late," Lily said to Peter (James had shown up on time; he'd told her to meet him at five fifty) with a frown. Peter blushed.

"I-I got distracted," was his excuse. Adelaide just smiled politely, and noticed that he was a clown, and the sight was slightly comical, to everyone but Adelaide, that is. If she was afraid of one thing that would be clowns (she had some relatives on her fathers side who were in a circus, so every month they would get free tickets; after being exposed to clowns at the tender age of five, she found she had a large amount of hostility for them). Thankfully, Adelaide managed to ignore it for the most part.

"What are you guys?" Remus asked, and Adelaide smiled as she saw him in a furry brown dog suit, with a headband that had floppy ears attached to them.

"I'm Demeter," she said, motioning to the flowers, "And Lily here is Persephone." She took the chance, and smiled as she saw that James was a Pirate (eye patch and all) while Sirius was a vampire. Adelaide had to admit, he looked rather handsome in a cape, and it was a nice cape too. It looked to be made of velvet, with the inside being red, as was typical of Dracula.

"I'm a clown," Peter said blandly, honking a bicycle horn that was obnoxiously loud, "It was the only costume left." Adelaide smiled sympathetically. She was trying not to notice she horrid suit, but it was becoming increasingly difficult. But she was slightly amused; Demeter on a date with a clown, and Persephone on a date with a Pirate.

After standing idly for a few minutes and chatting (Sirius being unusually silent) McGonagall's voice sounded over the school intercoms (only used when there was a sudden school wide announcement) and announced, rather cheerfully for a woman of her composure, that the celebration could begin. They wisely decided to chat near the portrait, so they managed to get out with little damage (though Adelaide and Lily both had a feeling that they would regret not wearing shoes very soon).

Their first stop was McGonagall's office, and to everyone's enjoyment she had painted her face and worn cat ears. She was smiling warmly, an odd sight but a welcome one none the less, and complimented their costumes (and in Adelaide and Lily's case, their originality). She did seem amused by Peter's costume, but she refrained from saying anything; instead she gave them all two chocolate frogs each. James was ecstatic when he found that she had only given them two each, claiming that it meant that they were her favorites.

All was going well, when about an hour in they suddenly turned into a crowded corridor.

"Quick, grab onto someone," Lily said, clutching to James's arm. Adelaide grabbed the first person she could , which happened to be Sirius. She turned her head to try and find Peter, but it seemed that he, along with James and Lily, had already been swept up. So, she clung tightly to Sirius' arm (fearing for her toes every second) as he followed Remus, who attempted to navigate their way out of the crowd.

They finally came out, not really wanting to know what had happened, and looking every which way to see if they could spot Lily's easily noticeable red hair. They found no such luck, and Adelaide sighed before fisting her hands on her hips. Sirius watched her from the corner of his eyes, and Remus tried to see over the crowds.

"C'mon," Sirius said suddenly, "Let's get to another corridor so we don't get caught up in that again." The other two nodded, and they walked quickly, until they found there selves in the dungeons, which needed no decoration to be fit for Halloween.

"That was a nightmare," Adelaide said under her breath, and both Sirius and Remus chuckled. She glanced between the two and a tired smile lit up her face, "Is it bad that I'm gratefulk to have escaped Peter?" Remus frowned slightly, while Sirius fought down a grin.

"I know you didn't want ot go with him," Remus chastised mildly, "But that doesn't mean,"

"It's not because of him!" Adelaide said quickly, waving her hands in front of her, "I just…" she blushed, looked down at her feet and murmured something unintelligible.

"Pardon?" Remus asked, raising an eyebrow, and Adelaide sighed.

"I-I'm really terrified of clowns," she admitted shyly, "When I was around him, I felt like I was going to have a panic attack." The other two looked at her in surprise, before Sirius burst out laughing.

"Of all the things to be afraid of, you're scared of a clown?" he asked, grinning at her. She was blushing madly, and for a moment she resembled the shy girl that they had met on the train. Was that really only two months ago? To all of them, it felt as if they had known her for a much longer time. Remus stepped in and saved her from further humiliation.

"We should go and find the others," he said, his lip twitching slightly in amusement, but he said nothing.

"Y-Yeah," Adelaide murmured, suddenly feeling self conscious in her outfit as she trailed behind the two slightly, frowning as she fiddled with the end of her hair. Sirius, who had been walking in step with Remus, turned and waited for a moment before walking beside her. HE found it amazing how she had suddenly reverted back to her shy nature in less then a second; it was almost as if she were bipolar.

"Hey, I was just teasing you, you know that right?" he said suddenly, and she looked up and smiled.

"I know, but it still hurts when people laugh at your fears," she responded, and her voice was very soft, not at all like it had been recently. Sirius frowned when he realized it was his fault that she was reverting back into her shell, something that he hadn't seen since September first. He opened his mouth to say something, when a door burst open beside them, causing the two to jump. They bother looked over to see it had been a broom closet. Adelaide opened her mouth to say something, when Sirius lurched foreword and the two went toppling into the closet.

"What the hell, Sirius!?" She asked loudly. Her back was pressing into some shelves, and it definitely was not comfortable. But when she heard cackling, she suddenly knew what had happened.

"Peeves!" Sirius roared, before attempting to open the door. The door rattled, but didn't even budge. Sirius kicked the door in anger, when Remus began pounding on the door.

"Sirius, Adelaide?" He asked.

"Peeves locked us in," Sirius called through the door. He listened as Remus attempted to un-jam the door, but it didn't work; not even Alohomora was working.

"Hang on you guys," Remus said in an exasperated voice, "I'll go get McGonagall." Sirius groaned, when he noticed that Adelaide was unusually quiet. He turned to see her pressing her fingers into her eyes, and shaking slightly as she took ragged breaths. Sirius blanched.

"Hey, what's wrong?" he asked, and Adelaide took in a deep, ragged breath.

"I'm claustrophobic," she said in a small voice, sniffing slightly, "Really bad claustrophobic –I had been locked in broom closet in first year by some Slytherin's, and I wasn't found for three hours." She shuddered again, but kept massaging her eyes. Sirius cursed.

"Damn Peeves," he murmured angrily, kicking the door for good measure. He sighed, and felt completely useless. When he heard a creaking noise, his head jerked up and connected with a shelf behind him, causing him to duck down again; unfortunately, at the same time Adelaide had shuffled and tripped on the hem of her dress, sending her toppling forward.

Their lips connected, and they both froze, staring wide eyed. They didn't move for what seemed like eternity, but in actuality had only been two second, before Adelaide shyly pulled away with furious blush covering her entire face and her neck. Sirius was blushing too; he could feel the heat radiating from his face. He fought the urge to grin as a giddy feeling went through him. He had kissed Adelaide; a pathetic kiss, but a kiss none the less.

"U-Uhm," Adelaide murmured, "I-I-I don't think that w…we should tell Peter about this," she murmured softly, toying with her sash as her blush refused to subside. Sirius nodded, and the giddy feeling didn't leave. Adelaide's breathing picked up again.

"H-How much longer do you think we'll be stuck in here?" she whimpered, shaking like a leaf. Sirius felt his heart contract, and he sighed before taking her into his arms and rubbing her back slowly. She clutched onto his shirt tightly and buried her face into his chest. Her breathing was still ragged, and she felt as if the walls were closing in around them, as if they would be stuck in there forever and starve to death.

"Just try not to think about it," Sirius said in what he hoped to be a soothing voice. She whimpered and her grip tightened slightly, but after three minutes she managed to stop shaking, but tears were soaking through Sirius' shirt. What felt like an eternity later (actually only really being two minutes) they finally heard footsteps and Remus' voice.

"This is the one, Professor," he said, and after a quick spell, McGonagall managed to unlock the door with no harm done to them, or the door itself (Sirius had begun to think they'd have to bast it to pieces). Remus raised and eyebrow at their situation, but when she slowly pulled away and he noticed she had been crying, his features softened.

"Are you alright, Ms. Vicknair?" McGonagall asked with a worried frown. Adelaide sniffed slightly and rubbed away at her tears.

"I-I'm just really, really claustrophobic," she murmured, before looking up at the other two with a small smile that didn't quite reach her eyes, "I suppose we should start getting candy now, huh?" McGonagall, upon seeing they were alright, handed both Sirius and Adelaide another chocolate frog.

"You've certainly earned something," she said sympathetically, "But it would behoove you to not tell anyone I was giving out candy to people who got trapped in a broom closet." She nodded briskly, before turning and heading back towards her classroom. Adelaide shivered and smiled at the two slightly, placing her candy in her pillowcase.

"Well, lets not let this ruin our fin," she said in an attempt to lighten the mood. They quickly agreed and began to head towards other classrooms, Sirius and Adelaide both avoiding each others direct gaze.

They were on the Third floor when they ran in to Lily, James, and Peter. Adelaide smiled at them, but Lily noticed how it didn't quite reach her eyes. She gave her a look, before smiling at the others in relief.

"We're glad you didn't get trampled on," she said, "Peter, James and I were getting worried." Sirius laughed dryly.

"At least you didn't get locked in a broom closet," he responded, and Adelaide nodded. James raised an eyebrow.

"What were you doing in a broom closet?" he asked.

"Peeves pushed Sirius and I into one," Adelaide said softly, "Not taking into account that I'm severely claustrophobic and almost had a panic attack."

"Are you alright?" Peter asked immediately, looking genuinely worried. Adelaide jus smiled and adjusted her sash,

"I am now; I'm lucky that Sirius was able to distract me," she said truthfully, before her eyes widened at how that sounded. James and Lily both raised their eyebrows, while Peter looked horrified.

"Not like that!!" Sirius said quickly (though he kind of wished that it had been like that) "Get your minds out of the gutters!" Thankfully, they accepted their answer easily, though Peter still looked horrified at the very idea of Sirius and Adelaide snogging.

By the time the night ended, they had their pillowcases filled to the rim with wizard chocolate and muggle chocolate ("A little treat" Dumbledore had explained), and about dead on their feet. Adelaide had kissed Peter on the cheek at the end of the night, to Sirius' annoyance and Peters delight, before heading up to the room with Lily. After seeing that the others had yet to return, Adelaide placed her bag on her bag, candy spilling out, before facing Lily with a wide-eyed, panicked look.

"I think fancy Sirius,"

-

**Disclaimer: **Harry Potter and all things concerning belong to J.K. Rowling. I own Adelaide Vicknair, Vanessa Wolfe, Caryn Gree, Elise Barnes, Madeline Vicknair, Annalisa Bertucci, Professor Sicily and Jean Vicknair.

**A/N:** For those who did not know, Demeter is the goddess of the harvest in Greek mythology and Persephone is her daughter, who is the goddess of spring. She is married to Hades (though against her will) and is allowed to visit her mother for six months out of the year. Her mother is so distraught at these times that the weather becomes harsher and crops are unable to grow. This is the reasons for the seasons, for when Persephone is reunited her mother is happy again.

And yes, when you're claustrophobic you do react like that. My mother is claustrophobic, I would know. And yeah, I hate clowns. Creepy little buggers. ((shivers))

Yours truly,  
B.E.N.


	7. Betrayal

**Wallflower**

**Chapter Seven: **Betrayal

It had been a little over two weeks since Sirius and Adelaide had been locked in a closet, and accidentally kissed. For two weeks, Adelaide had to deal with the fact that she had a crush on one of her first, true friends. It was the same for Sirius, because he fancied the girl that one of his best mates had a crush on.

Now Sirius sat on his bed, the dormitory completely void of life save for himself. He just stared at the wall in front of him, wondering what it was that possessed him to even think of asking Adelaide to accompany him to the next Hogsmeade visit on December Eleventh. He had no idea why he even thought of it in the first place, seeing as it was a month away.

Peter and Adelaide had kept up the tutoring sessions, but they barely saw each other in the hallway; Sirius knew she was avoiding him, that she didn't like him more then a friend, and even then she had admitted to not likeing him more then an acquaintance. While this relieved Sirius, he couldn't help but wonder how Peter would react. He still fancied her, and thought nothing of the fact that whenever he was heading in her direction she would suddenly turn around as if she had forgotten something. While that was harder to do during classes, she always managed to zoom out of the room, not waiting for any one.

"Moping isn't going to help,"

Sirius' head jerked to the side and he saw James leaning against the doorframe, watching him intently. Another occurrence that had shocked many, was that Lily and James were now officially dating; the news spread like a wild fire. Unfortunately, this just seemed to aggravate Sirius even more, though he really was happy for his friend, he wished he had been brave enough to ask Adelaide to Hogsmeade. Now Peter was planning on asking her, and he had a distinct feeling that Adelaide wouldn't be able to turn him down.

"Yeah, but it makes me feel better," Sirius retorted childishly. James raised an eyebrow.

"Peter asked Adelaide to Hogsmeade today," he said, and Sirius felt his gut contract painfully as he awaited the words he knew would follow, "She turned him down."

"What?" Sirius asked in amazement, and relief flooded through his system. James nodded.

"She was really polite about it, but Peter looked completely crushed," he said casually, and Sirius felt his relief be replaced with guilt –what the hell kind of friend was he? James seemed to notice this, but opted to not say anything, "Her exact phrasing was that she was waiting for someone else to ask her." Sirius' hopes crashed –so she didn't like him. James continued to talk.

"Lily cornered me afterwards," he said, and he looked rather amused, "She said that I need to, and I quote, 'get my ass up here and make you ask Adelaide to Hogsmeade' before she forces the two of you into another broom closet."

"Why does she want me to ask her?" Sirius asked, his eyebrows furrowed in confusion. James looked at him like he was completely daft.

"It means Adelaide fancies you," he said slowly, "who else would Adelaide tell who she liked? Lily is one of her best friends. And according to Lily, Adelaide hasn't been completely up to par recently, especially when she didn't see you in Transfiguration or Herbology. She wasn't able to concentrate, almost got strangled by some Devils Snare." Sirius felt his lip twitch upward slightly, but he fell back onto his bed.

"But what about Peter?" he asked grimly, "I'd feel as if I were betraying him; he really likes her."

"And she really likes you," James said as if it were simple, "She turned him down for you; that has to stand for something. You know Adelaide, and she hates to be the bearer of bad news. I think she really fancies you." Sirius groaned and dug his palms into his eyes before dragging his hands down his face.

"This sucks," he said simply, and James laughed, but shook his head.

"You know, I hear that Mulciber has taken a liking to her," he said off handedly, "I hear he's planning on asking her to Hogsmeade during Charms." Sirius almost leaped out of bed as he glared at James.

"_Mulciber?"_ he said though clenched teeth, "That good for nothing wanker? What the hell would he like Adelaide-" he cut himself off as he realized why, and he felt anger bubble up in him, "That no good, lousy son of a-"

"Whoa, calm down," James said warily, "The answer is simple: just ask her to Hogsmeade as soon as you get the chance. I think she's in the Library-" as soon as he'd gotten to the 'b' Sirius had jumped out of his bed and began running down the stairs, not caring that he could very well get a detention for wearing a pair of muggle jeans and a black tee-shirt instead of his uniform. James raised an eyebrow at the suddenly empty room, before chuckling and making his way down stairs. He was met with Lily, and was waiting with her hands on her hips.

"What the heck did you say that caused him to run out of here so fast?" she asked, and James grinned before wrapping his arm around her shoulders.

"I just stretched the truth a little," he said simply, "I told him Mulciber had taken an interest Adelaide; which by all means is true, I just added on that he was planning on asking her to Hogsmeade in Charms." Lily laughed and shook her head as they made their way to the Charms classroom slowly; lunch break wasn't over for another ten minutes, they had time.

When Sirius reached the library, he managed to slow down before entering the room at an acceptable pace. He scanned the room and easily picked out her curly hair as she sat near one of the windows, flipping through a book idly with a vacant expression on her face. Sirius swallowed, before walking over and taking a seat at the end of the table. Adelaide looked up, and a blush coated her cheeks before she smiled softly.

"H-Hey," she said quietly as she stopped flipping through the book, "what's up?" Sirius felt his nerves beginning to act up, and he stubbornly pushed them to the side.

"Are you going with anyone to Hogsmeade?" he asked bluntly, and her eyes widened, before she slowly shook her head.

"N-No," she responded slowly. Sirius threaded his fingers through his hair and glanced over to the side, before sighing in exasperation.

"Look," he began, licking his lips, "I heard that you're waiting for someone else to ask you, but I like you; a lot. I was wondering I you could just give me a chance, and go to Hogsmeade with me?" He watched her, and her blush deepened and her lips twitched up in a shy smile before she leaned foreword and gently kissed his cheek.

"I was waiting for you to ask me," She murmured softly, "I'd love to go with you." Sirius grinned brightly, before pulling her close to him and wrapping his arms around her in a tight hug. She squeaked before giggling softly, her cheeks heating up.

Peter watched with a sad expression from behind a book shelf, his fingers clenching his book tightly. Anger and betrayal roared up inside of him and began to eat away at his insides. It was like an infection that just grew until it took him over completely, and he clenched his eyes shut.

"It's not fair," a soft voice said, and Peter turned quickly to see Annalisa lounging sideways in an armchair, watching him sympathetically. She was one of the prettiest girls in the school, with skin like porcelain, and very elegant Italian features, with plump lips. She had black hair that hung in waves and dark chocolate colored eyes. She watched him as he eyed her cautiously; she was a Slytherin for a reason. She twisted in the chair before standing and walking slowly towards him. He turned his back to her and watched angrily as Sirius and Adelaide smiled at each other and spoke under their breaths.

"He always gets whatever he wants," Peter said under his breath, but he stiffened as Annalisa placed a hand on his back.

"You had you're eye on her since day one," she said softly, a coy smile playing on her lips, "You deserve her; Black will probably toy with her for a while before dumping her, leaving her broken. You know what happened to all those other girls." Peter shook his head.

"He's only seriously dated three girls," he said, though he wondered why he was defending him, "They either got obsessive, or they found someone else. Everything else is rumors." Annalisa frowned slightly, but he couldn't see.

"It's still not fair," she cooed, leaning down to his ear, her eyes focusing on the two, "you asked her out even, that should mean she is off limits. In a way, he betrayed you. He stole the girl you loved right from under your nose." She idly began to toy wit his hair, and switched her sights to Peter, who looked angry, which was rare in itself; he was almost never angry. She smiled, but continued, "Do you really want to be walked on? You told me yourself that you hated being the under dog."

"I wouldn't betray James and Remus," Peter said, watching her carefully. She patted his back and removed the grin from her face, instead looking sympathetic.

"I know, you've said how nice they are to you," she cooed, "I listened to you; I've always listened to you. You're really quite an interesting person; I don't see why they don't appreciate you more."

"They appreciate me plenty," Peter said harshly, shrugging her hand off of him. She frowned, but didn't allow her anger to show in her voice.

"I've seen how you are treated, Peter," she said slowly, "You may not see it, but you're the outsider; you're the one they walk on to raise themselves up a notch. To them, even you good friend Remus, you're just a stepping block."

"You're wrong," he said angrily, though doubt was curling up in his stomach, coiling inside of him like a snake around a field mouse. Annalisa smiled as she noticed the doubt begin to form. She shrugged her shoulders, her face void of emotion, and let her hand drop from his back.

"When you see that I am right," she said nonchalantly, "you can come visit me; I won't push you aside." And she walked away, leaving the Library with a triumphant grin. She had done her job and planted the doubt inside of him, she even gave it water to start its growth towards the sunlight.

Or maybe, she thought idly as she made her way into the dungeons, its growth towards the darkness. She smiled, before swinging into the Slytherin common room. It was empty, and she kneeled in front of the fire place. A face immediately appeared, with a strong jaw and heavy eyelids.

"I planted the seed," she said softly, "All we need now is to wait; as I said, if anyone was to join the Order, it would be the Marauders. We'll have a spy," she smiled while the face laughed triumphantly.

"Brilliant," she said gleefully, her eyes flashing, "Keep me posted, Lisa. I'll be in touch."

"Good bye, Bellatrix."

-

When Sirius and Adelaide reached charms (after Sirius made a quick stop to the dorm to change into his uniform) Sirius immediately spotted Mulciber watching Adelaide as if she were a piece of meat. So, he tossed his arm around her shoulder and gave her a kiss on the cheek.

"I'll see you after charms," he murmured into her ear, "and watch out for Mulciber; I don't like how he's looking at you," she nodded, if only to sooth his worries, before moving to her seat in front of the Slytherin in question, while Sirius moved across the room to his seat in beside Remus, closest to Flitwick's desk. He could see Adelaide, and openly watched her. She noticed easily and began blushing, looking down at her desk. Lily and James came in about a minute later, and they both noticed the change. James hurried to his seat beside Sirius;

"Did you ask her?" he asked, and Sirius nodded with a grin.

"She said yes," he replied happily. From what he could tell, Lily had asked Adelaide the same question. Mulciber looked less then pleased, and Sirius felt smug that he not only was going on a date with Adelaide, but he managed to annoy Mulciber.

When Peter came in, he looked pale and silently took his seat on James' other side. Sirius noticed.

"Hey, what's wrong, Wormtail?" he asked, and to his surprise Peter glared at him; a small glare, but a glare none the less.

"You would know," he murmured, before staring at his desk. Sirius blinked, and looked between the other two.

"What'd I do?" he asked, just garnering a shrug in response, from both of them. He opened his mouth, but Flitwick's tiny voice squeaked over the noise, and everyone paid attention.

"Today we're going to be working on a Delirium Charm," he announced, "you are going to practice them on your partners, but be extremely careful!" Sirius turned to Remus with a wolfish grin.

"This might be the best day ever," he said, earning a laugh from Remus in response. They listened to the instructions, and it wasn't long until Sirius was seeing floating hamsters around the room. Remus was watching, amused as Sirius unconsciously flinched each time a hamster would shoot towards his face.

"This is so weird," Sirius said after a minute, "and why hamsters? What good are they for?" He jumped as a hamster _snarled _at him. _A snarling hamster, _"Remus, you have issues." Remus laughed and lifted the spell, before Sirius began to practice as well. It was only a few minutes before Remus had to face the wrath of angry wolves.

"You had hamsters!" Remus said angrily, flinching as a wolf lunged at him, even though it passed right through him, "How do you get _wolves_ from _hamsters?"_

"It snarled at me," Sirius explained innocently, and this time Remus looked at him as if he were insane.

"A Hamster…_snarled_ at you?" he asked slowly, still flinching on occasion. Sirius removed the charm, causing Remus to sigh in relief. Before jumping, "I didn't know hamsters could snarl!" he was under another charm, but this one with a snarling hamster. Sirius removed the charm for real this time and nodded.

"That is incredibly creepy," Remus said slowly, staring at the spot where the hamster had been. Sirius grinned, before looking over to Adelaide where she was watching the room with a raised eyebrow.

"Lily," she said softly, "why did you make everyone stand up, dress as French maids, and do the can-can?" Lily grinned cheekily.

"Because I can-can," she said, and Adelaide sighed in disappointment.

"You lack originality," she said blandly, and Lily pouted before removing the charm. Adelaide acted quickly, and Lily about fell out of her seat.

"What the hell, Adelaide?" she hissed under her breath. Adelaide grinned.

"I see men in French maid outfits, you see James in a leotard," she reasoned with a shrug, "It seems like a fair trade."

"I hate you."

-

**Disclaimer: **Harry Potter and all things concerning belong to J.K. Rowling. I own Adelaide Vicknair, Vanessa Wolfe, Caryn Gree, Elise Barnes, Madeline Vicknair, Annalisa Bertucci, Professor Sicily and Jean Vicknair.

**A/N:** ((Gasp)) Annalisa's a Death Eater (go figure)!! THE PLOT THICKENS!!!! AND WHAT ABOUT SNARLING HAMSTERS!?!?

((cough)) anyway, this is going to be one of the shortest chapters you get. I promise. Besides, you got the longest chapter last time. ((smiles)) It seems like a fair trade.

Yours truly,  
B.E.N.


	8. The Invitation

**Wallflower**

**Chapter Eight: **The Invitation

Adelaide sighed heavily as she sat in Transfiguration, propping her head up with her hand while her other gently held Sirius', who was leaned back in his chair with a bored look on his face as they waited for other students to finish their test. It wasn't often that they got a written test in Transfiguration, but when they did, it was a) during their double classes and b) one hundred questions long. So far, only the back row was finished completely. They had to sit there and wait while the other two rows finished up their test.

"I'm bored," Sirius whispered, glancing at Adelaide from the corner of his eyes. Adelaide nodded lazily, before glancing down at her watch.

"We have fifty minutes," she murmured, and on queue the bell signaling other classes end sounded and several students groaned, knowing that they had another fifty minutes left until they could make their escape. Adelaide sighed before leaning back in her chair, untangling their fingers, and crossing her arms.

By now, every student in Hogwarts knew that Sirius Black was officially dating Adelaide Vicknair, though she was commonly referred to as 'that one shy girl who never talks'. Peter had out right avoided both of them, and only talked civilly with James and Remus; they both thought it was just a phase.

"Wanna play hangman?" he asked softly, and she shrugged before digging out a quill from her purse. Sirius supplied the paper, and after drawing the basics, charmed it so that the little man would slowly make his descent to the noose, instead of slowly appearing. He drew out the spaces, and since they couldn't talk, on the edge of the paper Adelaide wrote her guesses. It didn't take long, and her first two guesses were 'a' and 'o', which led her immediately to 'Padfoot'.

This managed to entertain them for about ten minutes, before they began to play tic-tac-toe. The majority of the games were cats, and when they finally grew tired of it they had twenty minutes left to the class. They settled with passing notes.

_I hate that we always finish first –S_

_I'd rather finish early. I abhor taking tests. –A_

_I wish she would change it so we took these in normal classes; or at least allow us to leave. She knows that we'll pass; she should cut us some slack. –S_

_She already does. If you haven't noticed, she doesn't take points off for us passing notes in class or playing tic-tac-toe instead of listening. –A_

_Ah, I forgot. Maybe that's why she's one of my favorite teachers. –S_

_I thought that was because she gave us extra candy on Halloween? –A_

_Well, that too. –S_

Adelaide smiled as she read his reply, and this continued until the last test was turned in five minutes before the bell was due. Adelaide smiled as McGonagall scanned the classroom before allowing them to talk amongst themselves quietly. Adelaide folded up the note and stuck it in her bag, before grinning over at Sirius, who wrapped his arm around her shoulder and brought her close to him.

"I'm glad that's over with," he said with a laid back smile, "I missed talking to you."

"I think you missed talking, period." She said with a grin, and he smiled bashfully.

"True," he said slowly, "But that includes talking to you." Adelaide shook her head but relaxed against him with a sigh, focusing on the way his fingers drew lazy patterns on her shoulder. She was beginning to drift off, when the bell rang, causing her to jump and Sirius chuckled before grabbing his things and grasping Adelaide's hand as making their way to the Great Hall for lunch, the others trailing behind them slightly.

"I haven't seen Peter recently," Adelaide mused as they took a seat, her beside Sirius and across from Lily, who had Remus and James beside her. Sirius shrugged as he piled food onto his plate.

"I only see him when he's in the dorm, or in classes. He doesn't really talk that much," he said, and Adelaide bit her lip softly.

"He isn't upset that we're going out, is he?" she asked softly, and Sirius shook his head.

"I don't think so," he said before grabbing his drink.

"Do you think the Hogsmeade trip is going to be canceled?" Lily asked as she looked up at the ceiling, which was almost completely white from snow, "If this keeps up we won't be able to walk without sinking." James groaned.

"We have Herbology today," he said, and the others winced. Then, as if some divine god had been listening, Dumbledore stood, and everyone silenced.

"Due to the weather," he said with a twinkle in his eyes, "All Herbology classes are canceled until further notice; unfortunately, that means that Hogsmeade trips will also be put on hold." Groans went through the hall, and Adelaide smiled at Lily.

"Does that answer your question?" she asked, and Lily smiled.

"That means we get a class off today," James said with a grin, "Awesome."

After setting through a D.A.D.A. class, everyone made their way back to the common room, where they ended up taking the squishy chairs by the fire, basking in its heat and sharing jokes with each other. The snow was coming down, and they could barely see outside of the window; it was all a white blur.

"We might get snowed in," Remus remarked as he eyed the white blur, "It's really coming down."

"We'll be fine," Sirius said with a wave of his hand, "Besides, it'll get us out of classes."

"And put us behind for our N.E.W.T.s," Lily countered quickly, flipping through her book slowly with a bored expression. The portrait swung open and they turned to see Peter walking in. He glanced over at them, before he seemed to ready himself and walk over, taking a seat across from Adelaide.

"Hey," he greeted slowly, and while James and Sirius raised their eyebrows.

"Where have you been recently?" Sirius asked casually, "We never see you except for in classes." Peter shrugged.

"Around," he answered vaguely, but no one pushed him for a clearer answer. Adelaide watched him carefully.

"Are you feeling okay?" she asked softly, "you look a bit pale." He shook his head.

"I'm fine," he responded, but Adelaide was right. He was very pale, and her hair was messier then what they were used to. Adelaide bit her lip, but didn't push it and quickly changed the subject.

"Hey, since you guys normally hang out at Hogwarts for Christmas I was wondering if you would like to come over to my house," she said with a smile. The others shrugged, and Peter was the only one to flat out refuse.

"I have to go to my grandparents this Christmas," he excused, "Maybe next time." Adelaide nodded in understanding, while the others promised to ask for permission.

"I'll be there," Sirius said before wrapping his arm around her shoulder and pulling her against him, "I promise."

"Excuse me," Peter mumbled, "I'm going to get started on homework," and he disappeared upstairs. Adelaide frowned and watched him leave in confusion.

"We don't have any homework," she said and the others followed her gaze to the staircase. She bit down on her lip, "He's upset."

"He's fine," Sirius reassured, "He's probably just tired, and behind on his work."

"But he turns in his work every day," Lily stepped in, "I see him." They were silent for a moment, when Peter suddenly came down again, rushing out of the common room.

"Peter!" Remus called, but he ignored him and the portrait swung shut behind him. Adelaide bit her lip even harder, but cursed when she felt the skin break and blood slip into her mouth.

"Bit my lip," she murmured to Sirius, and she ran a finger across the cut and pulled away to see her blood smearing against her finger. She frowned, before wiping it off on her skirt and taking her lip into her mouth.

-

One week later, Peter was in the kitchens, drinking a glass of butterbeer and staring at the table angrily. The elves kept away, but occasionally would bring up a sweet or another bottle. He knew that he would most likely miss his next class, but he didn't care.

In all honesty, he was happy for Adelaide on a small level. She was happy with Sirius; that much anyone could tell. The images, though, of Sirius and Adelaide caused anger and jealousy to rouse up inside of him like an angry dragon, clawing at his insides and causing angry tears to prick at the corner of his eyes. Even though it had been about a month, he couldn't get over her. Sure, they never had anything to begin with, but the fact that she was dating his best friend (who knew he liked her) was like a stab in the back.

"So, here you are again, drinking away your worries," Peter recognized the voice, and anger swelled up inside of him.

"Go away, Annalisa," he demanded, taking another drink. The Italian just raised an eyebrow and allowed her lips to quirk into a coy smile.

"You don't really mean that, do you Peter?" she asked as she made her way to the table and taking a seat across from him, resting her chin on her hands, "You enjoy my company." Peter snorted into his glass.

"What gives you that idea?" he asked, and she raised an eyebrow.

"You've never been so angry at me before," she whispered, before uncrossing her legs and taking off her shoes, and then trailing her foot up his leg slowly. He kept glaring at her and jerked his leg away.

"I have some self respect," he snapped, "Leave me alone. I'm not one of your little toys." Annalisa smiled coyly, before her form began to shift into a mirror version of Adelaide, the coy look replaced with an air of concern as she leaned over the table, her cleavage toying with him, and she gently cupped his cheek.

"Peter," she said softly, looking deep into his eyes, "It's not fair that you aren't giving other people a chance. See? I can be you're precious little Adelaide as much as you want me too." Peter felt his breath catch in his throat, and while part of him knew that Annalisa was just toying with him, and that this wasn't really Adelaide, he could help but want to believe that it _was_ Adelaide.

"A-Adelaide loves Sirius," he responded after a second, "And you aren't anything like her." Annalisa frowned angrily, the expression foreign to Adelaide's face. It sent chills down the animagus' back.

"I can be like her," she whispered angrily, her hands snatching out and grabbing his collar, pulling his face up to hers, "You just don't give me the chance. I can be anyone you want me to be. I'm a metamorphmagus, Peter! I could be Bellatrix Lestrange if you wanted me to! I can be anyone!"

"But you aren't Adelaide," he protested strongly, while his body said very differently, "You're Annalisa Bertucci."

"But I don't have to be!" she whimpered, before she relaxed, her grip slackening, and her expression changed to sad, her eyes watering up as she observing a weakening Peters expression, and his mind stopped working the moment he smelt Adelaide's scent wafting towards him. Annalisa easily kept back her triumphant expression.

"Peter," she whispered softly, pressing closer so that their lips were only a hair away, "Can you help me? Just for a little while?" He didn't get the chance to respond, before Annalisa pressed her lips against his and kissed him softly. Peter had no control over his mind as he kissed the Fake Adelaide back; it was what he always wanted, right?

So for the moment, he let himself believe that it really was Adelaide he was kissing, that it really was the girl of his dreams. Just as he was finally convinced, Annalisa pulled away and his world crashed around him as she morphed back into her original form. His heart stopped for a moment and Annalisa watched patiently as he gathered himself together.

"I can be you're Adelaide all you want," she said softly, gently running her fingers through his hair, "Just do everything I say." Peter didn't respond for a second, and then he only shook his head. and She smiled triumphantly, before pulling away and sliding her shoes back on.

"I'll see you soon, Peter," she purred softly, trailing a hand down his cheek idly, "Remember what I've told you."

-

**Disclaimer: **Harry Potter and all things concerning belong to J.K. Rowling. I own Adelaide Vicknair, Vanessa Wolfe, Caryn Gree, Elise Barnes, Madeline Vicknair, Annalisa Bertucci, Professor Sicily and Jean Vicknair.

**A/N:** ((GASP)) PETER'S BEING PLAYED! Bad Annalisa!! ((hits with newspaper))

((cough)) anyway, here you go. Peter almost sold his soul to the devil!! Please review, love you all, yadda yadda yadda.

Yours truly,  
B.E.N.


	9. Meet The Family

**Wallflower**

**Chapter Nine: **Meet the Family

December 20th finally arrived, and the Marauders (plus Lily, whose family was staying with her sisters husband Vernon) found themselves in front of a large Victorian styled house with a wrap around porch, that looked as if it was worth more then what any of them could dream of. Adelaide blushed, and waved vaguely to the house from under Sirius' arm.

"Welcome to Faye Mansion," she said with a hint of pride, "It's been in my mothers' family for centuries."

"It's big," Lily said in awe.

"Really big," James added. Adelaide laughed awkwardly.

"Truthfully, we barely use all of the house. Since it's usually just my father and the nurse here, we use the living room, dining room, kitchen, bathrooms, and bedrooms. I'm the only one that uses the library," she explained, "But I have to walk al the way to the other side of the house to reach it."

"Damn," Sirius whistled, "It's kind of intimidating." Adelaide laughed, before nodding towards the elegant house and walking foreword.

"Come on, I want to get out of the cold," she said with a bright smile, though there was also pain visible in her expression. The others didn't mention it and she quickly banished their things into their rooms. They quickly made their way inside, and were greeted by warmth that wrapped around them like a cocoon; it had to be twenty degrees outside. They closed the door behind them and noticed that they were on a slightly raised area, which led to a dining room and kitchen on the right, the living room just ahead, and a set of stairs beside a hallway, blocked off by a door, to the left.

The walls were floral wallpaper, and the floor was a beige carpet in the living room, while it was mahogany wood in the entry way and hallway. Their was three sofas in the living room that were clearly from the Victorian era, and looked as if it hadn't been updated at all. It wasn't a huge living room, and it seemed relaxing.

The dining room had dark chocolate brown walls with the same mahogany wood as in the hall, with an elegantly carved table with seats for eight. There was a grand piano in the back right-hand corner. There was no doors leading into it, instead an open archway from the entry way.

The kitchen had wooden paneling underneath a blue checkered wallpaper, giving it a very country-style feel that was much warmer then the living and dining rooms. The flooring was lighter colored wood, and the cabinets were topped with white marble. In the middle of the kitchen was a thin island, were there was pots and pans hanging over head and stools lined up on one side.

"It's a nice house," Remus complimented and Adelaide shrugged him off with a blush.

"Nothing blends; I just finished redoing the dining room. I'm going to redo the kitchen during the summer so it isn't so country (not that I don't like it) and fits in with the Victorian feel of the rest of the house."

"You know quite a bit about styles," James commented. Adelaide shrugged.

"I wanted to be a designer when I was little, so I studied up on fashion and styles; this included housing," she responded, "Go ahead and make yourselves at home, and feel free to raid the fridge for food."

"Where are our rooms?" Lily asked before yawning. Adelaide smiled.

"It is kind of late," she commented, before turning for the stairs, "come on, I'll show you where to go."

All their rooms were in a small cluster on the second floor, around where Adelaide's room was. They each got their own room, and there was another left over that was decorated for a little girl, with stuffed animals covering every inch of space. All of their rooms were similar with tan walls and brown carpeting. They had white dressers and bedposts and brown covers on their beds. Their were two full bathrooms (one connected to Adelaide's room, which was cabin-themed, and one in the hallway) and two half bathrooms (one connected to Remus' room, and another connected to Lily's).

"Well, I have to go check on my dad," Adelaide said after pointing out their rooms, "You guys go on and sleep; it wont take too long." They did so, Sirius a bit more reluctant, and it was barely after their heads hit the pillows that they fell asleep.

-

Sirius awoke when light filtered through his windows, and he knew it must have been a spell since his room was facing the west, and there was no way that much light would come in naturally. He groaned slightly, not really wanting to get up, but did so. He stumbled down the stairs and entered the kitchen to find that Adelaide was already up, and chatting with an elder woman who had dark hair pulled into a ponytail and was dressed in loose white pants and a baggy blue top. Adelaide turned when he entered and smiled widely.

"Sirius, this is Nurse Witte," she introduced, "She lives here during school so my father can stay at home."

"It's a pleasure to meet you," Sirius said and the nurse nodded with a polite smile before returning her attention to Adelaide.

"You are able to go pick up Madeline today, if you wish," she explained, "and Jean is awake now if you want to talk to him." Adelaide smiled sadly.

"Thank you," she responded, "I'll arrive at St. Mungos after everyone's woken up." Nurse Witte nodded, before apparating away briskly. Adelaide turned and looked at Sirius shyly.

"I-I'd like you to meet my father, if it's okay with you," she said shyly, and Sirius smiled kindly at her.

"I'd love to meet your father," he responded. Adelaide face lit up, and she turned and led him to the door beside the stairway. To his surprise, it did not lead to a hallway. Instead it led to a square room, with only two doors. One was open and revealed to be a bathroom, and the other was shut tight. Adelaide moved to it with a strong face, before gently opening the door. When she saw her father, she turned to Sirius and motioned him in.

The room itself was very similar to Adelaide's room and had a very welcoming feel to it. Setting in an armchair and looking out the window was an elderly looking man with gray hair and golden brown eyes, exactly like Adelaide's. He had a large protruding and from what Sirius could tell, also very tall. He looked over to the door when it entered and smiled.

"Lady, my darling!" he said, using a nickname Sirius had never heard before. He opened his arms wide and Adelaide moved quickly to engulf him in a tight hug. Jean seemed a bit disoriented as he hugged her back, with a dreamy look on his face, "It's so good to see you again, Lady, my girl. Has Maddie arrived yet?" Adelaide removed herself from his grasp and smiled, before shaking her head.

"I'm going to get her as soon as everyone wakes up," she said kindly, "You remember I invited my friends over, right?"

"Of course, of course," he responded weekly, his voice loosing it's sudden luster as he started to sound as old as he looked; it was hard to believe that he had just turned fifty.

"Did you have a good birthday?" Adelaide asked kindly, and Jean nodded with a dreamy look on his face.

"Yes – Elizabeth came and visited me, so that was nice," he murmured, and Adelaide kept back a frown. His eyes lit up again and he smiled, "who is the young man by the door? One of your friends? Adelaide glanced over her shoulder and waved Sirius over, and he arrived at her side quickly.

"Daddy, this is Sirius Black," she introduced, "He's my boyfriend." The man nodded slowly and shook Sirius' hand with surprising strength. He eyed Sirius before speaking,

"If you're courting my daughter, you better make her feel like a queen," he demanded, and Sirius blanched slightly; he was intimidating for looking so frail, "I want nothing then the best from my little girl." Adelaide just kept smiling, though her cheeks were flushed. Sirius looked Jean dead in the eye when he responded,

"I will never intentionally hurt your daughter," he said truthfully. They kept staring for a moment, before Jean smiled and drew him into a hug, causing Sirius' breath to leave him in a whoosh.

"Atta boy!" he said as he patted his back. Sirius pulled away and saw that Adelaide was giggling into her hand. Jean paid no mind, "Where are your other friends?" he asked, and Adelaide composed herself.

"They're all still asleep, I believe," she responded truthfully, and he nodded; suddenly, he seemed frail again and he voice was soft.

"Good, good, growing teens need their rest," he said frailly, "lots and lots of rest," he trailed off and looked out the window. Adelaide glanced at Sirius before moving behind the chair; though it looked like an armchair, it was on wheels so it was easier to navigate around the house. She wheeled him into the living room, setting him beside a couch and facing the back wall, where there was a large window with no drapes; it had a beautiful view of rolling hills and the glimpse of a distant lake.

As if on a queue, Remus came down stairs, followed by a still groggy James and a smiling Lily; Adelaide assumed that Lily had woken them up.

"There they are, daddy," she said with a smile, "They just woke up." She motioned them over and they did so, and Lily felt a bit embarrassed to still be in her pajamas.

"Who's who?" Jean asked, and Adelaide just kept smiling as she pointed them out and gave their names, throwing in that Lily and James were a couple. Jean eyed Remus closely.

"Well? What about you?" he asked, and Remus looked a bit shocked.

"What about me, sir?" he asked politely.

"Don't you have a girlfriend?" Jean asked bluntly. Remus blushed slightly.

"A-Ah, no, I don't," he responded, and Jean seemed surprised, but just grunted in response.

"Well," Adelaide said with a slight blush, "I'm going to go pick up Madeline from St. Mungos, you guys go ahead and make yourselves at home, fix up some breakfast, but make enough for everyone." She smiled, before suddenly apparating on the spot. Sirius blinked.

"That was sudden,"

It was barely twenty minutes later that Adelaide apparated into the kitchen, where Lily just finished fixing up some breakfast. Attached to Adelaide's side was a little girl who was about nine years old. She had thin strawberry blond hair and golden eyes, like her father and sister. She was very small, and she looked very similar to her sister. She was smiling widely and she bounded away from Adelaide with out a second though and stopped beside Lily, holding her hand out with a wide smile.

"Hullo! My name's Madeline, but everyone calls me Maddie," she said with a sweet smile, "You're really pretty; I hope I grow up to be as pretty as you." Lily turned a vibrant red, but smiled anyway, and gently shook her hand.

"It's a pleasure to meet you Maddie," she said, "My name is Lily."

"You're names really pretty," Madeline said shyly, glancing up at her through her eyelashes. Lily kept smiling, before withdrawing her hand and continuing to plate food. Maddie then turned and faced James with another vibrant smile.

"Hullo! Are you Addy's boyfriend?" she asked, referring to Adelaide. James and Adelaide balked.

"N-No, I'm Lily's boyfriend James," he said awkwardly, and Madeline frowned.

"Oh. I thought you were her boyfriend," she said glumly, before she cheered up again, "But it's ok! You and Lily look good together!" She pranced off with a wide smile and stopped in front of Sirius, who was watching with an amused smile from his seat at the island. She tugged on his sleeve.

"What about you," she asked with a seemingly permanent smile, "are you Addy's boyfriend?" Sirius smirked.

"Yeah, that's me," he responded, and Madeline's gaze hardened and she pointed at him in what she thought to be a threatening manner, and was really only very adorable.

"You better treat her right, or you'll hafta answer to me!" she demanded and Sirius managed to keep a serious expression (excusing the pun).

"Scouts honer," he said, and Maddie, although having no idea what he just said, nodded and pranced towards the living room, only to spot Remus on the couch, reading a book as he waited for dinner. She 'eep'ed loudly, before rushing over to Adelaide, who had followed her from a bit behind, and hid behind her leg. Remus looked up with a raised eyebrow.

"What's wrong?" Adelaide asked, and Maddie shifted her feet shyly.

"He's cute," she whispered into her sisters ear. Adelaide felt her lips twitch as she tried to keep in her laughter.

"How about you go say hi to dad?" she offered, and Maddie smiled brilliantly, before dashing into the living room and crawling into her fathers lap.

"Mornin' Papa!" she cried happily, and Jean smiled, though he seemed to be a bit out of it.

"Good morning," he said and she hugged him tightly. He looked a bit bewildered, but returned the hug anyways. Maddie began to jabber on about what she did at the hospital, and Jean seemed to just nod every once and a while even though he didn't seem to quite know what was going on. Adelaide frowned.

"He was doing so good this morning, too," she said softly, "and now he doesn't remember her." She sighed before turning with a smile, "How's breakfast coming along?"

"Done," Lily said with a smile, and motioned to the island where there were six plates in front of the six chairs. Adelaide grabbed a seventh plate that had been set to the side and some utensils and a napkin before heading into the living room.

"I hate to interrupt," she said with a smile, "But breakfast is ready. Maddie, go get Sirius to help you into the chair," Maddie nodded and ran into the kitchen, before stopping in confusion.

"Which one's Sirius?" she asked suddenly. Adelaide smiled, before responding, "The one with the black hair," and continuing to her father. She sat up a tray in front of him and placed the plate on top of it.

"Ah, Adelaide," he said with a smile, "It's good to see you again; how long has it been?"

"Not too long," Adelaide said softly, still smiling. Jean nodded in a dazed manner.

"That little girl is so sweet," he said absently, and Adelaide just nodded, before unfolding his napkin and setting it on his lap.

"You just tell me when you're done eating and I'll come pick it up," she said with a kind smile. She walked back into the Kitchen to see Maddie chatting away with Lily, who seemed amused by the whole situation. Adelaide just took the open seat beside Sirius, who looked at her with a smile.

"You should be a healer," he said honestly. Adelaide blushed but kept smiling.

"That's what I was planning on doing," she admitted, "I've just taken care of Maddie and dad for so long that it's really sort of second nature." Sirius nodded and returned to his food, but in all truth he was angry that Adelaide had so much on her shoulders, from a really young age as well. He managed to brush it off and kept up with the joyous conversation easily.

Sometime around noon, Maddie and Adelaide had gone out side to the gardens, and the others lounged in the kitchen sharing jokes and chatting aimlessly. When the two came back in, Adelaide looked extremely amused as Maddie shyly walked behind her with a small bouquet of flowers in her hands. Adelaide just kept grinning as they made their way to the kitchen, and Maddie left her sisters side and walked bravely up to Remus, holding out the flowers bashfully.

"I-I picked you some flowers," she said with a shy smile. Remus raised an eyebrow and took them graciously.

"Thank you very much," he responded with an easy-going smile. Maddie 'eep'ed before running back to her sister and latching onto her leg, glancing at Remus occasionally with a blush across her cheeks. James laughed and patted Remus on the back.

"Looks like you have an admirer," he said, and Remus just pushed him half-heartedly,

"Shut up,"

-

**Disclaimer: **Harry Potter and all things concerning belong to J.K. Rowling. I own Adelaide Vicknair, Vanessa Wolfe, Caryn Gree, Elise Barnes, Madeline Vicknair, Annalisa Bertucci, Professor Sicily and Jean Vicknair.

**A/N:** OMG I LOVE MADDIE SO MUCH!!! SHE'S SO ADORABLE I ALMOST CAN'T STAND IT!!!! ::SQUEEEEE!!!!!!::

...and now I hate chapters 11/12/13...::emosob::

And I'm obsessing with young Tom Riddle and fics that have him change in school cuz of some OC. I DON'T KNOW WHY!!! ::emosob::

Yours truly,  
B.E.N.


	10. A Christmas Special

**Wallflower**

**Chapter Ten: **A Christmas Special

The next day, they went down to the living room to see that there was now a large Christmas tree in the corner of the room, but it was bare of any lights or ornaments. Adelaide sighed.

"I told the house elves to take a break," she said with a slight smile.

"You have house elves?" James asked with a raised eyebrow. She nodded.

"Yeah, but I really don't have any use for them. Every year I give them vacations around the holidays, but it seems every Christmas they get a tree even though I tell them it's their vacation." She smiled, though, and you could tell that she was thankful for her elves thoughtfulness.

"I'm going to set up my dad," she started again, "and then I'm going to bring down the ornaments from the attic (AKA the fourth floor). I'll be right back." She didn't wait for a response, and it took barely a minute for her to roll her father out into the living room so he could watch as everyone put together the tree. He was smiling the whole time, but appeared to be a bit dazed. She wasted no time in trekking up to the attic and levitating about six boxes of ornaments downstairs, along with two boxes of lights. She gently set them on the floor, before she heard the pitter patter of footsteps as Madeline raced down stairs.

"Were you going to decorate the tree without me?" she demanded, and Adelaide smiled.

"I was just getting ready to get you," she said truthfully. Maddie seemed to accept that, before racing over to the boxes and ripping them open. Adelaide laughed, "Whoa, hold on! We have to put the lights up first!" Maddie frowned and crossed her arms, but sat dutifully beside her dad on the couch. Adelaide quickly opened the boxes, and glared at the tangled mess of lights.

"What kind of lights are we using?" Remus asked in an attempt to maybe make this even less chaotic. Adelaide sighed, and nudged the box with her toe.

"I like white Christmas lights, but Maddie likes-"

"Multicolor!" Maddie interrupted gleefully, "Can we, huh? Huh?" Adelaide bit down on her lip, but nodded reluctantly.

"Fine," she agreed, and Sirius wrapped his arm around her shoulder.

"Look, when you live on your own you can do the tree however you want too," he said, "Let Maddie have her fun." Adelaide smiled thankfully at him, before waving her wand. The multicolor lights sprang ouot of the box and untangled themselves before wrapping around the tree perfectly and plugging themselves on. Adelaide smiled.

"One thing I remember from my mother is one-hundred lights per foot of tree," she said happily, "A bare tree is quite a shame." She turned back to the boxes and pocketed her wand, "This is where we do it the muggle way. Everyone grab an ornament and put one wherever."

"Oh! Can I put on the topper?" Madeline asked. Adelaide smiled, and shook her head.

"Not quite yet," she said, "We save that for the end. But you can put the first ornament on." Maddie accepted this arrangement with no complaints, and studied the box of ornaments carefully, before pulling out what looked to be a star made of popsickle sticks and an overload of red and green glitter. In the center was a picture of Jean, a lot healthier looking, another woman who was almost identical to Adelaide, but with strawberry blond hair and brown eyes that didn't hold as much light in them as one might have hoped. She was smiling softly, and balanced on her hip was a two-year-old Maddie. A ten-year-old Adelaide was standing in front of her dad, his hand resting on her shoulder, and was smiling widely showing off her missing two-front-teach. They didn't move much save for Maddie, who was looking around with wide eyes, and their mother, who would cough into her fist, facing away from her daughters. Jean would pull Elizabeth closer to him, and his happy expression would falter for a brief moment, before returning.

"A wonderful choice," Adelaide complemented with a sad smile, and as Maddie ran off to the tree Adelaide briefly explained to her friends, "that was taken a week before my mother died."

When Maddie returned, Adelaide smiled again and began to pick out ornaments, mostly hand blown glass ornaments. "My favorites," she explained with a smile, before she continued to decorate the tree. By the time they were all finished, there wasn't a spot left on the tree to place one. It was odd to see a clearly expensive ornament next to an obviously home made one. Adelaide smiled, when Maddie tugged on her shirt, a pretty red tree-topper in her hands.

"Can I put it on now?" she asked softly, a pleading look in her eyes. Adelaide smiled brightly, before hoisting her sister onto her shoulders with sudden ease and walking carefully to the tree. Everyone was prepared to catch her if she were to fall, and Maddie was just barely able to reach the top and place the topper firmly on to the top. Adelaide quickly put her back on the ground and was engulfed in a hug from her little sister.

"Thank you," she whispered into her stomach, and Adelaide smiled sadly.

"No problem."

They spent the rest of the day (this time using magic) to set up her other decorations. On top of the mantle over the fireplace was now a rather large Christmas village, with the little figurines walking around, and at night they would return into their houses. Many more of these villages could be found all over the house, including on top of the dressers in all of their rooms, on top of the piano in the dining room, and on the island in the kitchen. Wrapped around the banisters of the stairs was garland entwined with red berries and pinecones. There were poinsettias in each room in someplace or another. There was also some mistletoe hidden through out the house (upon Maddie's request) and luckily Remus informed everyone where it was located.

"That was a lot of work, even with magic," Sirius commented with a grin as he reclined on the couch across from Jean, who had fallen asleep with his head propped on his hand. Adelaide plopped down onto his lap with a grin, and Maddie blushed as she shifted in her seat next to an amused Remus.

"Thanks for all the help," Adelaide said with a smile, and every quickly waved her off.

"It was our pleasure," James said from beside Lily. Adelaide's smile widened.

"Thank you for coming over as well," she continued, "Christmas time can be a bit lonely over here."

No one commented on the tear that had rolled down her cheek.

-

"Addy!!! Wake up!! It's Christmas time!"

Adelaide held back a groan, if only for her sister's sake, and yawned theatrically before raising in her bed. Maddie was standing beside her bed eagerly, slight bags under her eyes being the only sign that she was tired. Her eyes were twinkling in excitement, and she was practically vibrating with pent up energy Adelaide smiled and got out of her bed, just pulling on a robe over her pajamas and following her eager sister downstairs. She was surprised to see that everyone else (save for her father) was already up.

"She left you for last," Lily explained with a smile.

"I can tell," Adelaide responded, before gently pushing Maddie foreword, "I have to go get daddy; I'll be right back."

She quickly left the room and entered her fathers and saw that he was already awake and lying in his bed. He turned as she entered and smiled. Adelaide quickly helped him out of bed and into his chair, before rolling him out into the living room across from the large Christmas tree, close enough so that he could feel like he was apart of the celebration.

"Happy Christmas!" Adelaide cried loudly with a large smile. Underneath the tree were piles of Christmas presents, "I'll be your present distributor for today, so be patient while I dig through everything!" Maddie tugged on her shirt again.

"Can I be your assistant?" she asked eagerly, and Adelaide smiled.

"Of course!" she cried merrily, before conjuring up a Christmas hat and placing it on her head, tossing the white puff out of her face. She wasted no time and soon, everyone else was wearing a Christmas hat of sorts; Remus and James both had reindeer antlers, Lily and Madeline had on 'elf' hats, and Sirius got the only other Santa hat. Jean politely turned down the offer of a sailors hat, and Adelaide kept smiling as she placed it on his head anyways, earning a dazed smile in return.

"OK!" she cried enthusiastically, "The first present is for…" she waited patiently as Maddie scrambled to the tree and pulled a present out at random, before hurrying back over to hand it to Adelaide. She read the tag and smile, "Lily, from her darling parents!" (After Lily informed her parents of her visit with Adelaide, her parents had sent her presents early, and Lily had dutifully waited until Christmas to open them).

"Probably a sweater," Lily said with a smile, and she tore through the wrapping only to find that instead it was a gorgeous bracelet with Midnight Australian Opal inlay on either side of an oval stone, which a card revealed to be Tanzanite. She immediately put it on with a large smile, and snuggled closer to James, who kept his arm wrapped around her in a soothing manner.

"Next!" Adelaide called, and Maddie opted for staying by the tree (sick of setting by her sister while she cuddled with Sirius) and tossed her a random present. Adelaide quickly read the card and smiled, "Maddie! This is for you from Daddy!" she tossed it back, and glanced back at her father with a shocked expression. He was watching with a smile, and Sirius quietly leaned to her ear,

"Did you get this?" he whispered, and Adelaide slowly shook her head.

"No; this is really from him."

"Oh, I love it!" Maddie cried, before running over to Jean and hugging him tightly around his neck. He returned the hug with a smile, and Maddie pulled away to see a crimson colored scarf made of a soft material, with roses sewn into it with black thread; it was clearly a muggle creation.

"It took me two months to find something for you," Jean said softly, with the smile a permanent feature on his face. Maddie returned to the tree with a vibrant smile, her scarf already wrapped around her neck. Maddie quickly tossed her sister another box, and Adelaide quickly read the tag.

"Remus!" she said with a smile, "This is from Maddie!" She chunked it towards his head, and he caught it before it hit him in the head. Maddie was blushing furiously and hiding behind the tree while he opened it. He smiled kindly, and it was revealed to be a single pink rose.

"Thank you, Maddie," he said, and the girl bashfully buried her head further into her scarf.

"Welcome," she murmured softly, and Adelaide fought the urge to laugh.

"What next, Mads?" she cried, and Maddie quickly threw her another box. She read it, and blushed.

"It's for me, from Sirius," she said. She opened it slowly and gasped when she saw it. It was a white-gold necklace with a small rose, with rubies for petals and emeralds for the stem. She wasted no time in throwing herself at Sirius and kissing him, causing his eyes to widen as he tumbled onto his back.

"Oi, get a room!" James chastised playfully, causing Adelaide to pull away with a blush.

"Thank you," she said with a smile, and Sirius coughed into his hand.

"N-No problem," he murmured. Adelaide smiled slightly, before holding out the jewelry.

"Can you help me put it on?" she asked politely, and he nodded. She turned her back to him and lifted her hair so that it would be easier to clasp. When he finished she turned back around and gave him a quick kiss on the cheek.

"Addy!" Maddie said loudly, "I got another present to 'stribute!" Adelaide quickly turned her attention back to her sister, who tossed her another box. She read the tag before tossing it at James.

"It's from your parents!" she said as he caught it. He opened it quickly, and took out a broom care kit (his had been running low).

"Sweet," he said with a grin, before setting it beside him.

They continued to open presents until the packaging was all over the floor, and Adelaide quickly moved the trash into a conjured garbage bag, which she placed to the side.

Lily had ended up getting a ring from James that was white gold with tanzanite perched between two strips of opal (he admitted he asked her parents what they got, and he did his best to match them). She also got a book from Adelaide on Greek Mythology, chocolates from Remus and Sirius (boy, did that girl have a sweet tooth), and a picture from Maddie proclaiming her, Lily, and Adelaide to be 'Best Friends Forever' that was accompanied by a charm bracelet with a little heart, the word 'Best' engraved into it. Maddie was excited as she told her that she could get more charms to attach to them.

James had gotten a denim jacket from Lily that he looked particularly good in, a book that contained a record of all Major-League Quidditch games from 1950 to 1965 (including pictures and play-by-plays for each game) from Adelaide, some muggle chocolate from Remus, and some top-of-the-line Quidditch gloves as well as his own golden snitch from Sirius. Maddie had gotten him a cheep locket with a picture of Lily inside (no one knew were she had the time to get any of these things, but Adelaide suspected Nurse Witte had something to do with it).

Remus had gotten a book from Adelaide that contained a large range of information on the Defense Against the Dark Arts that contained information from all Seven years at Hogwarts (she, in fact, had managed to get it put together; it was all information from her notes she had taken from each of her classes) which would adapt with the new things they would learn this year with a simple spell. Lily had given him some chocolates (they shared a laugh at that), Maddie had also given him a hand drawn picture of a stick figure him (which he said he would frame and stick it on his nightstand, to her delight) and an expensive looking robe from Sirius, since he had accidentally set Remus' last expensive robe on fire.

Sirius had gotten a nice leather jacket from Adelaide that looked to be fairly expensive, a pocket knife from James that could unlock doors, a muggle book from Remus called Dracula (which Sirius joked about, thinking it was the name for a dog), some chocolates from Lily, and Maddie had gotten him a yellow-gold bracelet with a strap of gold that read 'Adelaide' in cursive. This caused Adelaide to blush and stutter like a fool, and Sirius put the bracelet on, to Maddie's delight. To his surprise, he also got a gift from Jean. It was a simple ring that was made of titanium, with a strip of onyx through the middle.

Adelaide had ended up getting a simple bracelet from Lily with little dog charms hanging from it (which cause Sirius to laugh, and for some reason so did Adelaide), a charm bracelet from Maddie that was the same as Lily's with 'Friends' carved into it, a cloak from Remus that had white velvet lining inside (he remembered how she liked Sirius' cloak from Halloween) with a hood, and a variety of chocolates from James that she would probably end up sharing with Lily and Maddie. Her father (to her surprise) had gotten her a scarf similar to Maddie's, but was made of blue material with the roses sewn in with white thread.

Maddie was ecstatic to find that she got presents from everyone. While Remus and James both got her chocolates (which she adored), she also got a small stuffed dog with wild black fur and grey eyes, and a ring from Adelaide that was too big for her finger, so it was on a white gold chain. It had a large diamond on a white-gold band, and Adelaide smiled and told he rit had been their mothers wedding ring. Maddie had also gotten herself a charm bracelet to match Lily's and Adelaide's that read 'Forever'. She had also gotten a new jacket from 'Jean' that was really from Adelaide, but no one said anything.

Jean had sat back and watched patiently, and ended up getting a joint gift from Adelaide and Madeline. It was a scrap book, which Maddie had helped decorate, and inside it went from year to year, including pictures from when he met Elizabeth to 1966. It was very large, and Jean had started to tear up when he flipped through the book and spotted a picture of his wife, with a newborn Adelaide in her arms. Everyone politely ignored the tears that rolled down his cheeks as he hugged his daughters tightly.

-

After eating breakfast (they were hungry now that the excitement from opening presents was over) Adelaide rushed everyone to get dressed so they could go outside. She wore her new scarf tightly around her neck, and for kicks she also wore her cloak from Remus. Everyone ended up wearing their new jewelry and jackets, and Adelaide rushed them all out onto her back porch, where snow was lightly falling.

"We're making snowmen!" she declared, "It'll be a contest! And since Maddie's so small,"

"Am not!"

"- I'm going to team up with her while the rest of you fend for yourselves!" she finished. Sirius chuckled.

"You really get into the Christmas spirit, don't you?" he asked, but instead got a face full of snow.

"Shut up and build! No magic allowed!" Adelaide demanded, her cheeks already turning pink. Sirius grumbled, but did as she instructed.

It was a very cold two hours seeing as how after they all got the basic body they decided to use their own clothing to dress them up. While Adelaide refused to let Madeline donate anything to the cause, her snowman ended up wearing her scarf and cape (which to her joy matched) and used some stones for eyes, nose, and a large smile.

Sirius had some trouble trying to get his Jacket to stay on the snowman, but he managed well enough. His snowman had the traditional buttons, also out of pebbles, and his snowman was smirking. He also picked up some pine straw and gave him some hair.

Remus seemed to put the most care into making his, and after placing his robe on the creation he used pebbles for eyes, but instead used his finger to draw a nose and a mouth. He also drew on a vest to the snow mans middle, since he didn't want him to appear like a nudist (he looked pointedly at Adelaide and Maddie when he said that).

James looked rather ridiculous, with his new gloves sticking out from his side making him look as if he had very small arms. He didn't give up his denim jacket (he was too cold) and instead took a leaf from Remus' book and drew on, to everyone's amusement, a rather crude version of six-pack abs. He was proud of his achievement, until Lily hit him in the back of the head with a snowball.

Lily had not used any clothing on hers, and went very traditional and used black rocks for eyes, and rushed inside, found a carrot, and stuck it in his face to give him a nose, and used pebbles for his mouth. She ended up making a quick little headdress from some flowers (after asking Adelaide for permission) and used sticks for arms.

"OK!" Adelaide cried, "Now…who the heck is going to be the judge?"

"Can I be the judge?" Maddie asked with wide, adorable eyes. Adelaide easily gave in, and Maddie made a show of inspecting each and every snowman, from head to bottom (seeing as he lacked toes…). She stepped back with a bashful smile, before announcing.

"Remus wins!"

"What? No fair!" James said mock angrily, "She fancies him! I call foul play!"

"Now, now," a voice said from behind them, "If Maddie thinks that Remus won then Remus won." They turned and saw Nurse Witte standing there with a camera in her hands. She smiled politely at them.

"I hope you don't mind, but I was taking pictures while you made your snowmen," she said. Adelaide's eye lit up.

"Thank you, Ms. Witte!" she said with a smile, "That was a wonderful idea!"

Soon, everyone made their way back inside (after posing for pictures with each others snowmen, James and Sirius being the most ridiculous, and getting their clothes back) and sat down at the dining room table, where Nurse Witte sat out some hot cocoa for everyone.

"I heard that they're playing a movie down in town," Nurse Witte said with a smile, "You might want to go check it out; I hear it's very popular with muggles."

"I love movies!" Lily said with a smile. Adelaide shook her head regretfully.

"I have to look after dad," she began but Nurse Witte quickly shushed her.

"Nonsense, I can look after him," she said.

"But it's Christmas-"

"And I've already celebrated," the Nurse continued, "You go and have your fun; bring Maddie along, it can be quite an experience for her." Adelaide smiled thankfully, and everyone quickly finished their hot cocoa before once again getting dressed, this time in muggle clothing. They all wore jeans and thick sweaters, and in Sirius and James' case, their new jackets, and in Adelaide and Maddie's case, their new scarf's. They quickly walked out of the house and into the cold wind, and jogged down into town, Lily explaining what a movie was while Adelaide supported Maddie on her hip without complaint.

It was fairly easy to get into the movies, since Adelaide made a habit of having muggle money in stock, and found seats in the middle of the theatre.

"What are we seeing again?" Sirius asked from his spot beside Adelaide.

"Rocky Horror Picture Show, I believe," she whispered into his ear, lacing their fingers together. The lights dimmed and silence greeted them. After a few commercials, the movie began with a wedding scene…

When the movie ended, everyone was a bit surprised at how the movie had been, and still giggling insanely with the music stuck in their heads, and quoting the movie every now and then. While Maddie didn't quite understand some of the movie, she did find the humor of some of the situations (though Adelaide slightly regretted taking her to see it).

"Muggles are so odd," Sirius said with a chuckle as they left the theatre and went back into the blistering cold.

"I'm just a sweet transvestite," James was singing to himself, causing Lily to erupt into giggles.

"But did you see how everyone stood up and did the time warp?" Adelaide asked with a smile, "It was bloody hilarious!"

"And that one guy who was in the golden Speedo?" Remus asked as he walked with Maddie, her small hand clinging tightly to his, and everyone shivered at the memory.

"That was very scary," Lily commented, and James, noticing how she kept shivering, tossed his arm over her shoulder.

"This might just have been my favorite Christmas so far," Sirius whispered into Adelaide's ear. She smiled and wrapped her arm around him, kissing his cheek.

"Me too."

-

**Disclaimer: **Harry Potter and all things concerning belong to J.K. Rowling. I own Adelaide Vicknair, Vanessa Wolfe, Caryn Gree, Elise Barnes, Madeline Vicknair, Annalisa Bertucci, Professor Sicily and Jean Vicknair.

**A/N:** …I feel bad because it's so happy right now…and chapters' eleven/twelve/thirteen aren't…grrr! I NEED MORE HAPPY!! NOM NOM NOM!!!!

And quick question: for Christmas, does you're family wait until Christmas day to open ALL of the presents, or do they open presents from family on Christmas eve and open Christmas from 'Santa' on Christmas day?

Yours truly,  
B.E.N.


	11. The Letter

**Wallflower**

**Chapter Eleven: **The Letter

Sirius grinned as he lounged on Adelaide's bed, watching as she searched through her drawers for her leather jacket that she had, apparently, gotten from her father on her seventeenth birthday. Previously, he had gone in to wake her up, but he found her awake and searching for her jacket. That was a bout ten minutes ago.

"I know it's here somewhere," she murmured, mostly to herself, when something caught Sirius' eye: a black sleeve sticking out from under her bed. Curiously, he tugged on it and to his amusement pulled out her coveted jacket.

"Is this what you're looking for?" he asked. She turned quickly, and smiled when she spotted it in his hands.

"Where did you find it?" she asked as she strolled over and tugged it on over her white tank top; it went well with her bell bottom jeans and black boots.

"It was under your bed," he said with a shrug of his shoulders, before standing up and tossing his arm over her shoulder, "now we match." She blinked, before realizing that he was also wearing a pair of muggle jeans, but he had on a black tee shirt and black trainers.

"Oops," she said with a grin, before nodding to her door, "C'mon, we've kept everyone waiting."

He walked with her without complaint, and when they made it downstairs everyone was once again hanging out in the dining room (since the Island in the kitchen was still decorated), and breakfast was already laid out in front of them. Remus glanced up upon their arrival and smiled.

"What took so long?" he asked casually.

"Couldn't find my jacket," Adelaide admitted with a small smile and a blush. Lily raised an eyebrow.

"You match," she said bluntly.

"It was an accident," Adelaide and Sirius said at the same time, causing them to glance at each other with raised eyebrows.

"Creepy," James muttered with a grin, "Anyway, what's on the agenda today?"

"I was thinking that we would head out to town and then come back in to set everything up for New Years," Adelaide said as she walked over to the table and took a seat at one of the empty spots next to Lily, "Even though it's only us, I like to have a lot of food, and I like to prepare it."

"You like to cook?" Lily said with a surprised smile. Adelaide nodded and began to move her food around on her plate.

"It's a hobby of mine," she admitted with a shrug, "But I prefer baking."

"For some reason, I never really saw you as a baker," Remus commented, and Adelaide blushed and shrugged her shoulders.

"I like cake, so if I know how to bake I can have it whenever I want," she murmured before straightening and smiling widely, "Come on, We've only got three days left before we get back on the Hogwarts Express!! Finish eating and get ready to go!" She almost stood, when Sirius gently tugged her back down into her seat.

"You haven't eaten anything yet," he said with a grin. Adelaide blushed again.

"Oh, right,"

-

They ended up spending five hours down town, mostly making fun of some of the muggle things they saw and commenting on some of the people they passed by. They finally got back to Vicknair Mansion around four o'clock, and Adelaide immediately began to get out a large assortments of ingredients for foods and spread them on the counters, using magic to momentarily clear the island, the village now setting on the floor in the middle of the living room.

"Do you want some help?" Lily asked politely.

"Sure, why not?" Adelaide returned, "Just do what the directions say in the book," before she could ask what book it was, she summoned a large cook book and made it flip to a page, "You'll be in charge of the Hash Brown Casserole."

Everyone watched in amusement as she moved quickly, barely using any magic at all and moving much quicker then Lily, and ended up making about ten different dishes, including some thing called 'Ramaki', which was (to their slight disgust) chicken liver and a slice of water chestnut wrapped in bacon and some spices. She also had some sushi (they had no idea she even knew how to make it), some tortilla wraps, mashed potatoes, chicken and dumplings, hash brown casserole (which looked to be really cheesy), and several other unnamed dishes.

That didn't include the deserts.

"She's like the Hogwarts elves in one small package," Sirius said in awe as she placed the food that needed to be kept warm under a warming charm, while keeping the food that needed to be kept cool under a cooling charm and began to get out things for the deserts, levitating all her trash and derbies into the trashcan.

"And it's only seven o'clock," James added in equal awe.

It reached nine o'clock, and they managed to finish the deserts. By now, they men felt as if their stomachs were eating its self. Adelaide smiled and high-fived Lily, who managed to step up the pace after getting used to the fast pace of Adelaide. They had successfully created a Rum Cake, a Coke-A-Cola Cake (both muggle creations), Chocolate Pudding, Snicker doodle Cake (with a large amount of cinnamon), Chocolate Chip Cookies, White Chocolate Chip Cookies, and various store-bought treats in bowels. Adelaide smiled proudly.

"Well, we can start eating now," she said, and it didn't take long for the rest to pile into the kitchen and start eating the food.

"Hey, where is your dad and Maddie?" James asked after a second, and Adelaide frowned and glanced towards the stairwell.

"Daddy's not feeling well today," she said slowly, her hands on her hips, "He had a fit this morning, which is why I was up so early. He thought I was mum again. Maddie also isn't feeling well, and I decided to let her stay asleep."

As if on queue, Maddie made her descent down stairs, fully dressed and smiling happily.

"Hullo!" she chirped as she skipped into the kitchen, snatching a cookie from it's tray, "When did you get back?"

"Around four," Adelaide said with a smile, "How was your day?" Maddie pushed herself onto a stool beside Remus, and begin to chatter incessantly about all she did. Apparently she woke up thirty minutes after they had left, and spent her time chatting with one of the House Elves (who apparently stuck around even though on holiday), playing with her dolls, and visiting her father.

"He didn't really talk much, though," she finished, "but its okay! He I was there and I think he liked the comp'ney."

"Seems like you had a fun time," Remus said, causing Maddie to blush and kick her feet timidly.

"Yeah, it was fun," she said bashfully. Adelaide sighed with a smile, before snatching a cookie from Sirius, who was just about to eat it.

"Wha-? That was my cookie!" he protested. She shook her head.

"Nope, I made it, I eat it," she corrected with a smile, before taking a bite. Sirius sighed, before getting another cookie off of the tray.

The next two hours passed by quickly, and they continued to snack on all of the food (though it was no where near gone). Maddie acted as if she were attached at the hip to Remus and always agreed with him; Adelaide was sure that if he said he had four arms she would believe him. Adelaide didn't fail to notice, though, that Remus was looking a bit paler then normal.

"Is Remus feeling alright?" she asked with her eyebrows furrowed in worry. Sirius nodded,

"Yeah, he'll be fine," he said quickly. Adelaide eyed him, but shrugged it off and glanced at the clock with a gasp.

"It's eleven fifty-five!" she said loudly, "Five minutes till New Year!" She was almost buzzing with excitement. Sirius laughed, wrapped an arm around her shoulder and kissed the top of her head.

"You're easily excitable, do you know that?" he asked playfully. She smiled at him, before returning her attention to the clock, staring at it intently. He laughed, "If you do that, it'll just pass even slower."

"I know," she sighed, before flicking her wand and turning on the nearby radio, which was already set on the channel where the countdown would be announced.

'_- Fifty-Six, just four more minutes until 1977 begins! So keep you're loved ones close, and remember to give 'em a big kiss when the year begins! For now, lets pass the time with a song you might know…'_

With a song playing in the background, everyone began to get jittery as they waited for the countdown to begin. Adelaide was almost vibrating again, and was snuggled close into Sirius' side. Remus was smiling as he listened to Maddie as she talked about her day (right now she was going through a play-by-play of the drama she set up for her dolls today), and James was teasing Lily as he continued to beat her in a game of Wizards Chess.

'_All right listeners, just one minute to go…'_

"I'm getting nervous," Adelaide said as she grabbed some Ramaki and eating it quickly. Sirius raised an eyebrow.

"Why?" he asked casually.

"I don't know, I always get jittery before something big like this," she admitted, before grabbing another cookie, "And I'm scared something might happen to Maddie."

'_Forty-five seconds…'_

"What do you mean?" Sirius asked in confusion, "Why?" Adelaide sighed.

"I keep getting hopeful that she might make it another year, and I'm scared that something will happen before the year even starts and she'll miss out," she admitted, before tightly grasping his hand, "I don't…I don't want to let her go yet. It's always on my mind; I want to be beside her when she does die, because I don't want her to be all alone." Tears were welling up in her eyes as she watched Maddie chat happily with Remus. Sirius gently grasped her chin and turned her towards him.

'_Twenty-five!'_

"Listen to me," he said softly, "Even if you can't be by her side when she passes, she won't be alone. She'll know that you care, and she'll know that on some subconscious level that you're thinking about her. Look at her: She isn't thinking about her sickness, or that she might die in a month. She's living as best as she can, and enjoying every second of it."

'_Ten!'_

"Do you mean it?" Adelaide whispered, not paying attention as everyone else began to count down. Sirius nodded and kept eye contact with her, his face serious (excusing the pun).

'_Eight!'_

"Why would I lie to you about something like that?" he asked softly, gently moving his hand so he cupped her cheek. She watched him with adoration as he offered her a smile; not a cocky one, and not a sarcastic one, but a genuine smile that sent chills down her spine and caused her heart to contract.

'_Five!'_

"Thank you," she whispered softly, and returning his smile. He watched the way her eye's crinkled and her cheeks pinked, and the way she seemed to light up emotions.

'_Three!'_

She moved her face closer to his, and she felt his thumb run across her cheek, causing goose bumps to erupt on her arms. She hesitated, before she pressed her lips against his and latched her fingers onto his jacket to pull herself closer. They were completely oblivious of the fact that Lily and James kissed each other, causing Lily to blush, and that Remus had given Maddie a small peck on the cheek, to her obvious delight. They were only aware of each other as their lips moved together passionately.

The kiss was slow and caused heat to run rampant through their bodies. Adelaide moved her hands upward, before wrapping her arms around his neck and pulling herself closer to him and he placed his hands on her waist as their lips moved together slowly, but with enough passion that it felt as if they were much closer, and sharing a much more intimate kiss.

"Oi! New Years passed twenty seconds ago!"

James cry caused Adelaide to jerk away in surprise, almost causing her to tumble foreword and she temporarily lost her balance on her stool. She was blushing madly, and Sirius also had a light pink tint to his chinks.

The others might not have known it, but that was possible one of the most intimate kisses either of them had ever had.

-

Ever since New Years, it seemed that every little gesture from Sirius held much more emotion then one could have thought: when he opened the door, when he held her hand, when he walked beside her, when he kissed the top of the head or her cheek, when he _looked_ at her. That New Years seemed to have awoken something in each of them: it wasn't lust, though there was plenty of that, but it was more substantial then that, but it wasn't exactly love, though, either.

But they did know it had to be pretty damn close.

Now, they sat together on the train to Hogwarts. It was the fourth of January, and Remus seemed to have gotten even paler. Maddie had seen them off with the company of Nurse Witte, and she looked healthier then ever, as well as happier then ever. This cause Adelaide to smile graciously, and for relief to fill her: maybe she would make it for a few more months, maybe even a year!

The train ride was like any other, and they spent the time laughing with each other and stuffing their faces with candies from the trolley; they were almost disappointed when they reached the Hogsmeade Station and got onto the carriages again.

"How do you think Peter's winter break was?" Adelaide asked casually, and the others shrugged.

"We've never not spent a Christmas with him while we went to school," James said with a shrug, "I was surprised to hear he was going to his grandparents house." Sirius nodded in agreement and Adelaide began to worry her bottom lip again.

"You don't think I upset him, do you?" she asked cautiously. Sirius shook his head quickly.

"Nah, he probably just wanted to spend time with his family for once," he said firmly, "You've done nothing to offend him." Adelaide slowly nodded, accepting his answer, but she could help but wonder: if he had left Hogwarts for break, why hadn't he sat with them on the train?

The moment she entered the castle, she forgot all of her worrying and walked happily with the others to the Great Hall, where people were already eating their food greedily. They took their normal seats and completely forgot about any of their worries as they enjoyed each others company.

"I can't believe class starts up again tomorrow," James said as he lounged against the table, "It's odd." The others murmured their agreement, but they didn't let it get them down.

"I'm kind of worried that I forgot things," Adelaide admitted with a laugh, "I'm sure I'm the only one."

"No, I'm worried to," Lily agreed, "They're going to start cracking down soon on our N.E.W.T.s. We're not going to be able to have any free time with the amount of home work they'll be assigning; especially McGonagall!" The others sighed as they realized that Lily was right.

"I'm going to miss just lounging in the common room, making fun of first years," James said, earning a laugh from his friends.

"You should be able to still do that," Lily said, "Save for the first year's part: you are a head boy now." James grinned cockily.

"And you're my head girl," he said cheekily, causing her to laugh and blush at the same time.

"You're so odd," she chuckled, before yawning.

"Looks like we're all tired," Adelaide commented dryly, before pushing her tray away, "I don't have room for desert, I'm going to head to bed."

"I'll come with you," Sirius offered, but Adelaide shook her head.

"You hang out with them if you want," she said but Sirius smirked.

"I want to walk with you," he said sincerely, and Adelaide blushed before nodding. She rose from her seat and made her way to the doors, Sirius walking beside her. When the door shut behind them, he wrapped his arm around her waist and brought her closer to him.

They didn't notice how Peter, who had been absent from diner, watched angrily as they walked away without paying any notice to him.

-

Adelaide was one of the first people to make it into the great hall for breakfast that morning with a small smile; she had ended up falling asleep on the couch with Sirius, and he'd only woken her up when Lily came in later that night to help her get to bed. She was extremely well rested, and abnormally chipper as well. She knew, somewhere deep down, that today was going to be a good day.

She took a seat and waited patiently for everyone else, placing food on her plate as she waited for them. She was buttering her toast when Sirius, Lily, and James walked in. She smiled brightly as they walked over, and tilted her head to the side when she noticed Remus' absence.

"Where's Remus?" she asked curiously as Sirius took a seat beside her.

"He's not feeling well today," James answered smoothly, "He's in the hospital wing right now."

"Ah," Adelaide said shortly, before taking a bite of her toast. Their conversation was moving along easily when Peter came and took a seat beside James, a smile on his face that they hadn't seen in a while.

"Peter!" Adelaide said happily, "It's nice of you to join us." He just smiled, before piling food onto his own plate.

"We wish you could have been with us for Christmas," James said with a grin, "We had a blast; Adelaide's little sister fancies Remus." Peter laughed, slightly surprising Adelaide, and smiled.

"I bet that was interesting to watch," he said with a grin, before returning to his food.

The flapping of wings alerted everyone to the arrival of the mail, and Adelaide was surprised when a letter was dropped in front of her. She furrowed her eyebrows and picked it up carefully.

"I never get mail," she said softly, panic beginning to build inside of her. She noticed the handwriting as Nurse Witte's. She swallowed and shakily opened the letter.

'_Dear Adelaide;_

_I'm sorry to inform you that last night, Madeline finally succumbed to her cancer and passed away in her sleep. She was smiling when I found her, and I have informed St. Mungos. The funeral has been set for Saturday, January 8. You will be needed by tomorrow afternoon at the latest if you want to help plan the funeral, which I know you do. You knew what your sister would have wanted, and I know that you need to do this. I have begun to gather all the pictures of her I could find from birth till now for you to look through upon your arrival._

_I'm sorry that your vacation had to end on this note, and I deeply regret her loss: Madeline was a wonderful, intelligent little girl who could light up any room she was in. I am honored to have met her, and her wonderful caring family. She lived a good life, and she can finally be with her mother._

_Sincerely yours;_

_Nurse Jessica Witte'_

-

**Disclaimer: **Harry Potter and all things concerning belong to J.K. Rowling. I own Adelaide Vicknair, Vanessa Wolfe, Caryn Gree, Elise Barnes, Madeline Vicknair, Annalisa Bertucci, Professor Sicily and Jean Vicknair.

**A/N:** And I'm sure you all hate me. OMG HOW COULD I DO THAT!?!?! ...shoot me now ::emosob:: WHY!?!?! Oh gods...I made myself cry...

**To clarify something about Sirius and Adelaide's relation ship**: they are not in love yet. They started dating because they had a mutual attraction to each other, physically and emotionally. They have only dated for two months, and in my mind that is too soon in a relationship for you to say that you are in love with someone. You may have noticed that I never once made them say 'I love you' to each other or mentioned love in their actions or expressions. That's because they don't: right now it's like infatuation, but more emotional then that.

Their kiss on New Years represented that their relationship had grown from a simple crush to something more: they cared more for each other, and they felt more emotionally connected to each other. It goes along with the 'you don't have to have sex with someone to be intimate with them'. Every thing they do causes feelings to erupt inside of them; and I'm not talking about lust. It's a deeper and more substantial feeling then that. As I said, it's not quite love, but it's close.

I think that, the New Years scene (and the explanation following) is some of the best writing I have done throughout this story, and possibly all of my stories. I feel like I did a good job at expressing the change in their relationship without directly going 'Their relationship changed'. **Please tell me you're thoughts on that passage; I really want to know YOUR opinions on how I wrote that situation.**

Yours truly,  
B.E.N.


	12. The Saddest Day

**Wallflower**

**Chapter Twelve: **The Saddest Day

Adelaide stared blankly at the letter, unaware of the tears that had began to roll down her face and blot along the paper. It was as if time had stopped, as if the world had suddenly crashed down upon her. The letter dropped out of her hand and into her food, immediately catching everyone's attention. She stared blankly for a moment as her hand hovered in mid air.

"Adelaide?" Sirius asked softly, "What's wrong?"

That was all it took for her to break down completely. She clutched onto Sirius, to his surprise, and sobbed heavily into his shoulder, her cries catching almost everyone's attention. Sirius felt anticipation wind up inside of him and he grabbed the letter. He read through it quickly, before his grip tightened.

"What happened?" Lily asked in confusion, grasping James' arm tightly. Sirius didn't answer the as he wrapped Adelaide tightly in his arms and gently whispered soothing words into her ear. Professor McGonagall, who had also gotten a letter, it appeared, hurried from her seat and stopped behind the pair.

"Mr. Black, I think you might want to escort Ms. Vicknair from the Hall," McGonagall said briskly, her eyes soft, "I will arrange for a portkey to leave tomorrow morning,"

He quickly stood, supporting Adelaide as best as he could. She could barely see, making it near impossible to walk, but she managed. With Sirius acting as a crutch, she walked quickly out of the great hall, eager to get away from prying eyes.

When they reached the common room, her tears hadn't stopped and if anything, she'd cried even harder. The Fat Lady looked worried, but asked no questions and immediately opened up once Sirius gave her the password. No one was in the common room anymore, but he didn't want to risk it and lead Adelaide up to the Boys Dormitories, which he knew was empty. He quickly took a seat on his bed, and drew Adelaide into his lap, his arms holding her tightly as she sobbed. He placed the letter on his night stand, wanting to get it out of his sight,

"Shh," he whispered, "It's going to be ok," She whimpered.

"Sh-she was just a buh-baby!" she sobbed, "Sh-She nuh-never did ah-anything to duh-deserve th-this!"

"I know," Sirius murmured into her hair. "She was a good kid who lived her life to the best of her abilities. She had a good life."

"A-A good luh-life!?" Adelaide asked angrily, pulling away to look at him incredulously, "Sh-She was in the hoh-hospital most of her life! How is that guh-good?"

"It was for her well being," Sirius said softly, brushing her hair out of her face, "But you made sure that she experienced as much to life as she could; you took her out of the hospital even when it wasn't the wisest thing so she could, at least for a moment, be a kid. She had a sister who loved her more then anything in the world, and she loved you for everything you ever did for her."

"I-I cuh-could have tried huh-harder!" she whimpered, burying her face back into his shoulder, "I could have duh-done something more!"

"You did all you could have done," he whispered into her hair, gently rubbing her back, "You couldn't have stopped this from happening." That just caused her to moan pathetically, and another wave of tears to hit her.

Sirius didn't know how long they sat there, Adelaide latching onto him, crying on and off, but he never left her side. He kept holding her, and sometimes she would drift off into a light sleep, but wake up and start crying again. Soon, she had seemed to run out of tears and was left whimpering into his shirt, which was sticking to his skin from the moisture. Slowly, she pulled away, here eyes red and puffy, and stared down at her lap with a tortured expression.

"I'm sorry," she whispered, laughing dryly, "I got snot all over your shirt."

"It's okay," Sirius said with a slight smile, "I've got plenty of shirts."

She sat there for a moment, before slowly laying down on his bed beside him, not really looking at him. He stayed propped up against his headboard, but gently ran his fingers through her hair. Her breathing evened out, and for a moment he thought that she had fallen asleep.

"I feel like I'm in a dream," she whispered after a second, "I knew it was coming, but I never really prepared myself. I thought that I would get a letter saying her health was failing, and that I would be able to go to St. Mungos and be by her side. I-I didn't want her to die alone."

"She didn't die alone," Sirius said softly, his hand stopping its menstruations, "she knew you cared, that her dad cared, and that was enough for her. She can be with her mom now."

She whimpered and curled closer to him. She didn't say anything for a while, and she just stared at his thigh blankly allowing herself to be consumed in her thoughts. A while soon turned into an hour, and then into two, and before either of them realized it classes were over for the day, and James and Peter walked up stairs, James with a worried frown. He saw Adelaide's state (though she was quiet, she still appeared quite distraught) and bit his bottom lip before asking,

"What was in the letter?"

This jerked Adelaide out of her musings, which by that time had gone into a complete circle about five times, and she looked at him in surprise, before realizing that they knew nothing. She swallowed, feeling her eyes tear up, but she pushed it away in an attempt to keep composed.

"She died last night," she said softly, "Maddie's gone."

While Peter seemed nothing short of confused, James' mouth fell open in surprise, and he blinked several times. He glanced at Sirius, who nodded grimly to show it was not their form of a sick and twisted joke.

"When…when is the funeral?" James asked slowly. By now, Peter felt as if he were an outsider, something he was not used to when it came to James. Adelaide swallowed, her mouth feeling as if she had cotton balls stuffed in it.

"On the eighth," she said slowly, and her fists tightened onto the blankets as she bit back tears.

"We're going," James said with determination, "Lily, Remus and I. And Sirius. And Peter-"

"I can't make it," Peter said suddenly, causing everyone to look at him, "I have…er…a prior engagement."

"Prior engagement!?" Sirius yelled, anger flooding through him, "Her sister just _died!_ I think that's more important than some little _prior engagement!!"_

"I didn't even know the girl," Peter said in his own defense. Sirius growled in the back of his throat while Adelaide's fists tightened onto the blankets, and tears finally began to leave their sanctum.

"SO?" Sirius yelled angrily, wanting nothing more then to punch him in the face, "Even if I _didn't _now her I still would have gone to support Adelaide!"

"She'll have you, Remus, James, and Lily," Peter reasoned in a slightly shaky voice, "What's it gonna hurt if I'm not there?

"YOUR FRIENDSHIP!" Sirius roared, leaving his place on the bed and stalking towards Peter, before taking his shirt into his hands and shaking him angrily, "A NINE-YEAR-OLD GIRL JUST _DIED!! _SHOW AT LEAST _SOME _COMPASSION!!"

"Stop fighting," Adelaide said in a weak voice, setting up in bed with her hands gripping her head as she looked at the comforter, "Please stop fighting; it's ok if he doesn't want to go. I don't care." Sirius looked at her, knowing that she really _did _care, before letting go of Peter and moving back to his bed to sit beside her. She leaned against him and held him tightly to stop him in case he wanted to attack Peter. Peter grimaced, before turning around.

"I'll be in the common room," he said to James, "Get me when it's time to go." And he shut the door behind him. James grimaced: that had definitely not gone smoothly.

"Well," James said after a moment, "Sirius, you stay with Adelaide tonight: I'll be with Remus." Sirius looked at him for a moment, before realizing that today was a full moon.

"No," Adelaide protested softly, "If you want to go with them it's fine, I'll be fine." Sirius looked at her, before looking back at James.

"Even if I did go, I wouldn't be able to concentrate," he said honestly, and James smiled slightly, though it didn't quite reach his eyes.

"I know," he responded, before making his way back to the stairs, "I have to go tell Lily what happened. I'll see you guys later, OK?"

Then, it was just the two of them again, and Adelaide felt more miserable then ever. Sirius noticed, but said nothing and opted to just stay there, if anything to show her that he wouldn't abandon her like Peter had.

They spent the rest of the day there, and Adelaide got Lobby, the house elf, to bring up some stew when they were hungry so she wouldn't have to go downstairs. They ate mostly in silence, and Adelaide's eyes were glazed over as she ate. She ended up falling asleep curled up beside Sirius long after dark had fallen. She was completely exhausted, and was knocked out as soon as her head hit the pillow. Sirius watched her sleep for a moment, before relaxing and falling asleep beside her.

-

Adelaide awoke to soft voices above her, and she noticed immediately one was Sirius. At first, she wondered why she heard him: boy's weren't allowed in the girls dormitories. Then everything that happened yesterday slammed into her, causing her eyes to tear up as she realized this _wasn't _a dream, and that Madeline really was gone. Forever.

She slowly sat up, and she felt Sirius gently run his fingers through her hair.

"How are you feeling?" he asked. She grinned slightly, and offered a humorless chuckle.

"Like shit," she said bluntly, and Sirius and the other voice chuckled. She blinked a few times, and noticed that the other person was James, who was setting on the edge of his bed. She wasn't that surprised.

"It's eight o'clock," James said helpfully, "McGonagall came by and said that she has a portkey set for nine. We were just about to wake you up."

"You guys are coming with me, right?" she asked, her voice slightly panicky, "and what about Remus? Wasn't he sick? He didn't come to bed last night."

"Remus said that there was no way he would miss it," Sirius soothed, his hand stopping on her head, "He's just getting some pepper-up-potion from Madame Pomfery. Lily is getting things together for the funeral. She sent me to ask what you want."

"Oh! Um…" Adelaide hesitated, not really sure, "I'll have to look." She stood, stumbling a bit as she attempted to use her legs after twenty five hours of lounging in Sirius' bed. She offered a slight smile to the other two, before briskly walking out of the room. The two shared looks, but said nothing.

Adelaide spent the next forty five minutes in her room searching through her trunk for things she might need. She ended up instructing Lily not to pack any clothes, that she would let her borrow things for the funeral. In the end, she just had a photo album with images of her sister from the day she was born to her death. Adelaide held her head up high, and clutching it close to her chest she made her way downstairs to where James, Sirius, and a sickly looking Remus were standing in wait for them. James had a knapsack tossed over his shoulder, and at her inquisitive stare, he grinned slightly.

"Clothes for our stay," he said, "used an expansion and a featherweight charm on it so it can hold all of our stuff. What about you guys?" he eyed them, and Adelaide smiled grimly.

"I'm letting Lily borrow some of my clothes," she said truthfully, "so we don't have to pack anything."

"What's that," Sirius asked, motioning to her album. Adelaide smiled grimly.

"A photo album," she said softly, "Of Maddie." There was a tense silence for a moment, before Adelaide straightened and seemed to strengthen, if at least for a moment, "We need to get to Dumbledore's office; I have a lot of planning to do." She turned on the spot and walked briskly out of the common room, and the three shared brief looks before easily catching up with her. As expected, Professor McGonagall was waiting outside of the Gargoyle with a grim expression. She raised an eyebrow at Adelaide's stony expression, but opened the door without mentioning it.

When they entered the room, Dumbledore was standing in front of his fireplace with a pensive look. He turned with a friendly smile and held out his arms slightly.

"Ah, Miss. Vicknair," he greeted, "It is nice to see you, though of course I would have wish this had been on better terms." He moved from his spot and opened a desk drawer, where he pulled out a broken muggle pocket watch. He nodded and strolled over to the group, placing the pocket watch in Adelaide's trembling hand. "This, of course, is set to leave in a minute exactly," he explained, "If you could all touch it, it will transport you to Vicknair Manner in a matter of seconds." They all quickly did as instructed, each having a firm grip on the watch somewhere, with Adelaide gripping the chain.

"Thank you all for coming," Adelaide whispered, and she was shaking slightly as she attempted to keep back her tears, "I-I don't think I'd be able to go in the house otherwise." Lily offered her friend a comforting smile, and opened her mouth to speak but was interrupted by a pull from behind there belly buttons, and their feet suddenly leaving the ground. They all stumbled a bit when they landed in the Vicknair's kitchen, and Lily almost fell over, not used to travel by portkey. Adelaide immediately dropped the chain and was greeted by Jessica Witte, who placed a comforting hand on her shoulder.

"I see your friends came with you," she said gravely, and her red eyes showed that she had been crying, "If you will just leave any of your things here, a house elf will get it momentarily. I'm afraid that we need to get to work quickly if we want to get things done in time."

"How is daddy?" Adelaide asked immediately, and the Nurses' smile faltered.

"He…is holding up," she said slowly, "He has been going in and out of fits recently. I've kept him sedated, but still."

"I understand," Adelaide whispered, never letting go of her photo album, "Where is our first stop?"

"To the funeral home," Jessica said firmly, "We need to pick out a casket, and settle everything over. They want pictures of her, so they can make a slide show of her for you." Adelaide smiled gratefully, before turning to the others. Her eyes were watering, but she didn't cry.

"We should get going," she whispered softly. Sirius immediately walked up and stood next to her, placing a hand on her back. She smiled at him, and it didn't quite reach her eyes. She looked at Jessica with determination, and nodded her head to show they were ready. The nurse pursed her lips, before heading towards the door.

"We have a lot of work to do,"

-

**Disclaimer: **Harry Potter and all things concerning belong to J.K. Rowling. I own Adelaide Vicknair, Vanessa Wolfe, Caryn Gree, Elise Barnes, Madeline Vicknair, Annalisa Bertucci, Professor Sicily and Jean Vicknair.

**A/N:** This was hard for me to write, because I used a lot of personal experience in writing this, including things from my grandfathers death and how I reacted. Adelaide is acting strong, because she feels that it is her duty too. That's how I reacted, because my mom was a blubbering mess, and I hated seeing her like that. Adelaide is trying to be strong for herself, though, because she doesn't want to be seen as weak, and she doesn't want to cry any more.

Yours truly,  
B.E.N.


	13. The Funeral

**Wallflower**

**Chapter Thirteen: **The Funeral

Sirius was worried for Adelaide for many reasons. She had planned the funeral almost completely by herself, with some occasional guidance from Nurse Witte or her friends. She picked out the casket, decided on the flowers for the casket and from her, designed the pamphlet explaining what exactly happened on her funeral, picked out the dress that Maddie would be dressed in for the viewing and the burial (they didn't as for shoes), and picked out the music and the order of things. Oddly enough, she chose muggle music to be played, upon insisting that Maddie loved muggles.

By the time night came, they had the whole entire funeral planned out. All Adelaide had left was the eulogy. Sirius sat beside her while she jotted down ideas, not actually writing a speech ("I want this to be from the heart; she deserves more then prewritten words on a piece of paper,"). She ended up falling asleep at the table, with her head resting on his shoulder, and he moved her back to her room after a minute of enjoying the silence

She awoke at six in the morning and immediately began to pick out everyone's clothes; and that means everyone's. Sirius awoke to the sounds of someone shuffling through his closet, and saw Adelaide, almost looking like a zombie, pulling out his dress robes and matching shoes.

"What are you doing?" he'd asked groggily, "The funerals tomorrow."

"And the viewing is today," she returned briskly, "I'm sorry this looks so weird; I need to keep myself busy. I've already picked out what Remus and James are wearing; I'm letting James borrow some of my dads shoes because his are a bit scuffed up."

So, Sirius allowed her to pick out everything, and Remus seemed surprised that she let him borrow some of her fathers dress robes from his younger years. It was a bit behind the times, but it wasn't terribly noticeable.

Lily seemed to put up more of a fight, but when she saw how dead Adelaide looked when she just sat down and did nothing, she quickly retracted her words and allowed her to shift through her clothes for a nice outfit.

And then, they were standing in the living room waiting as Jessica Witte prepared Jean for the viewing. Adelaide was dressed in a black long-sleeved turtleneck and black slacks. She had on her glasses for a change, and had pulled her hair into a low ponytail. Lily was wearing an emerald green v-neck top and a black skirt that looked a bit small length wise, and she looked nervous as she held tightly to James' hand. All the boys had on black dress robes, though Sirius had a tie, James a bowtie, and Remus had neither.

"Oh my god," Adelaide whispered after a moment, and she began pacing the room, her fingers weaving into her hair, "I can't do this, I can't do this. I'm going to freak out." Sirius immediately was by her side, and his hands gripping her upper arms firmly.

"You'll do fine," he said softly, "She'll just look like she's sleeping." Adelaide shook a little, but she didn't cry. When Nurse Witte finally entered the room, pushing Jean in his chair, she smiled sadly; Jean was definitely paler then they remembered.

"We can leave now," she said, and Adelaide grasped Sirius' arm tightly.

"I can't do it, I can't focus," she said shakily, her eyes pleading, "Help me please?" He smiled in what he hoped to be a soothing manner.

"No problem," he responded, before picturing the funeral house in his mind and apparating on the spot.

There were the first to arrive at the funeral home, as expected, and Adelaide kept a tight hold on Sirius' arm even though they had already apparated. He didn't say anything, and walked at the pace she set, which was surprisingly slow.

"I don't think I can do this," she whispered as they made their way through the building, and they could see the casket ahead of them. Adelaide's grip tightened, and her eyes widened, "I don't want to see her…I can't look at her…"

"You don't have to now," Sirius said softly, "We have all of today and all of tomorrow to see her, it's okay." She shakily too a breath, and stood off to the side while the others went up to look at her. Remus and Lily seemed to be worse of then James, since Maddie had interacted with them more (and had a small crush on Remus), and James kept an arm wrapped around Lily's waist in a supportive manner. Adelaide could see Maddie from where she stood, and that was about all she could handle; if she could see her up close, she would completely break down in front of everyone.

She didn't like crying in front of large amounts of people. She didn't mind if one person saw, in fact she preferred it, but as soon as another person stepped in she tried to stop. Here, there were several people. They were starting to arrive, and finally, she broke when Jessica wheeled her father up to Madeline's side. He watched her for a moment, before he started to cry. He stood from his chair (to Nurse Witte's disapproval) and gently stroked her hair, a distraught look on his face. Adelaide saw that he had Maddie's crimson scarf in his pocket. Her heart began to beat faster as her emotions tried to break free, and her face began to heat up.

Jean gently patted Maddie's hands, which were crossed over her stomach stereotypically; she would have never lied like that. Adelaide's grasp tightened.

"My baby girl," Jean croaked out, "My poor Maddie."

With a soft sob, Adelaide buried her face into Sirius' shoulder and began to cry heavily. He looked a bit awkward standing there, but he carefully wrapped his arms around her and gently held her to him as her shoulders shook. She didn't approach the casket all day, and just watched as people would come to her casket and gently kiss her cheek or forehead, or to place something in the casket with her. Jean still held tightly to the scarf after he took his seat in his chair again, and he remained beside the casket the whole time. People would come up and talk to him, and he wouldn't speak much in return.

"Oh, Addy, darling," a larger woman said, dressed in fine robes and with the same eyes as Jean and Adelaide, and she ripped Adelaide from Sirius' arms to take her into a hug. Adelaide looked positively murderous at the sight of her, and simply offered a smile that clearly showed her distaste for the woman: it was a mocking smile that Sirius hoped to never see on her face ever again.

"Auntie Bell, I'm surprised you found the time to come," she said softly, and her eyes flashed dangerously. Aunt Bell didn't notice.

"Well, of course! She was my niece, after all, as well as my god child."

That seemed to send Adelaide into a mental rage, and the only sign of it on the outside was the muscle in her jaw jumping and the tightening of her smile.

"Well, you haven't even sent my father a letter in seven years, I thought you might have died," Adelaide said stonily, and Aunt Bella seemed a bit nervous suddenly, but Adelaide seemed to have turned the tables on her and had her upper arms gripped firmly. Obviously Aunt Bell didn't want a scene, because she remained in the tight grasp with a worried look.

"Well, I…I have been quite busy," she said lamely. Adelaide pulled her aunt a bit closer, and began to speak, whispering loud enough for Sirius to hear her, and quite frankly, he never thought he would ever be that scarred of Adelaide again.

"Listen, _Annabel,_" she spit out her aunts name like it was venom, and she suddenly drew her wand and pointed it at the woman's nose, causing her to go cross-eyed, "I spent eight months trying to contact you after mums death. Never _once _did you reply. I had to sit there and comfort my father while raising a two year old essentially by myself. If you even _try_ to show up to daddy's funeral, I will personally see to it that you have a one way trip to St. Mungos." Then she added as an after thought, "Oh, and just try to call me Addy. See what happens."

She let a few sparks emit from her wand, singing her aunts nose, before letting go of her as if she had a disease, disgust clear on her face. The woman quickly left the funeral home, stumbling on the way out, and Adelaide watched with pure loathing. Sirius stuck his hands in his pockets with his eyebrows raised. Adelaide glanced at him, and relaxed slightly, taking out her pony tail and running her fingers through her hair with a grin.

"I've been wanting to tell that to her for nine years," she admitted, and Sirius let out a bark of laughter before placing an arm around her shoulder.

"I'll remember to keep in contact," he said with a grin. Adelaide seemed honestly happy for a moment

The day came to a close, and Adelaide left without going up to her sister's casket. Sirius said nothing and just stood with her as people continued to sign the guest book and see Maddie, eventually leaving after sharing a few words with some other visitors. No one really approached her, and they seemed to only be there because it was what was expected. Half the time, even Jean seemed angry at the people who had walked through the door.

When they returned to Vicknair Mansion, while Nurse Witte wheeled Jean back to his room, Adelaide hurried to a cabinet, and pulled out a bottle of Firewhiskey and sat it on the counter, conjuring up a glass quickly. She looked at the others.

"Want one?" she asked, and they all shook their heads. Adelaide nodded before pouring some into her glass and taking a drink. She sighed when she finished, and leaned against the counter with a lazy look on her face.

"I hate my relatives," she said simply. She poured more in the glass, before capping the Firewhiskey and setting it back in the cabinet. She took her time with this glass, and hefted herself so she was setting on the counter. She looked around the kitchen with a frown.

"It's hard to believe that just seven days ago, we were celebrating New Years together in here," she said softly, before taking another drink with a glazed look to her eyes; she was shifting through her memories. When she finished her glass she vanished it, and hopped down from the counter, "You all might want to head to bed; we have a long day ahead of us."

-

The same thing as last morning happened the next morning. Adelaide was up, though a bit calmer then yesterday and it was eight o'clock, and shifting through everyone's things to find clothes for them. Amazingly, no one woke up save for Sirius as she went through their things.

"You're my last stop," she said softly, "and then I'm going to get dressed." He watched through tired eyes as she finished pulling out his outfit, and she turned and smiled at him. "Thank you for being by me yesterday, it really means a lot to me." He smiled and finally got up, a muscle in his back popping as he did so.

"It was no problem," he said truthfully. She smiled at him, her gratefulness shining through.

They met together in the living room again, and while the guys wore the same general thing, maybe made of a different material, Adelaide wore a black turtleneck dress that came to her knees, and dressy high heeled shoes. Her hair was hanging free this time. Lily was wearing a box-next black dress that also fell to her knees, and shoes similar to Adelaide's.

"I have to speak today," Adelaide said timidly, wringing her hands nervously in front of her, "I'm getting anxious."

"You'll do just fine," Sirius said, placing a hand on her shoulder, and offering her an encouraging smile, "If you want I can make stage cards for you." She laughed and shook her head in amusement.

"You're something else," she said, when Jessica wheeled Jean into the room, and they apparated to the funeral home like last time. They made their way to the casket, and Adelaide grabbed a pamphlet from the front, but she didn't look at Maddie for to long before she began to gnaw on her thumb. She took a seat in the front row, and while the others got their own pamphlets, Nurse Witte helped Jean into a seat on the left of Adelaide while Sirius took the seat to her right, observing the pamphlet with only slight interest.

On the front was a picture of Madeline holding up nine fingers, and one of her front teeth were missing. Her head would suddenly turn with wide eyes and someone (he suspected it to be Adelaide) tugged on a lock of her hair as they passed behind her. Underneath it read:

_Madeline M. Vicknair  
January 8, 1967 – January 4, 1977_

Sirius frowned; her funeral was on her birthday. This had to be some sort of sick joke. He glanced at Adelaide, who was very quiet as she stared at the cover of her pamphlet. Her hand was shaking slightly, but she managed to keep her tears in. Sirius returned his attention to the pamphlet and opened it to read what was inside. The back of the cover had a poem in it by a muggle poet, and he didn't recognize the name.

_Tardy, by B.E. Nomads_

_I'm Sorry  
But my remorse is a bit tardy_

_I want to go back  
and pick up all the slack_

_I loved you  
and now I'm seated in a pew._

_I just wanted to say  
It hasn't been the same since you went away_

Sirius re-read it several times, before moving on to the next page, where it went through the list of events. He smiled as he realized that the pamphlet definitely had Adelaide written all over it. She may not know much about muggles, but she loved muggle literature and music. That explained why he had no idea what the songs were that were going to play.

_The Viewing  
Dust in the Wind, Kansas  
Eulogy by Priest  
Three Little Birds, Bob Marley  
Eulogy by Adelaide Vicknair  
Have You Ever Seen The Rain?, Creedence Clearwater Revival  
Dismissal_

He looked over at Adelaide again, and she was staring at the casket, worrying her bottom lip as she tried to decide on going up or not. He gently placed his hand over hers, and her head snapped over to his in surprise. He smiled slightly.

"I'll go up with you if you want to see her," he offered. Her eyes flickered over to the white casket again, before she nodded. He stood, setting his pamphlet in his seat and she did the same. That gained the others attention.

"Where are you going?" Remus asked from beside Sirius.

"To see Maddie," he replied. Remus nodded, relaxing in his seat, and Sirius kept a hand on Adelaide's back as she made her way to the casket. Her heart was beating in her chest as she got closer, until she felt it would explode. Then, she was in front of her, looking down at Madeline's peaceful face. She bit down her lip, before gently brushing away a strand of hair from her sisters face.

"Hey," she whispered softly, her voice cracking, "bet you thought I wouldn't come up here after yesterday. Sorry about that, but I wasn't up to it. I bet you liked seeing Remus," she chuckled a bit, "he even pulled himself from the hospital wing to come. I think he liked you; I think all my friends liked you. How couldn't? You're so bubbly and full of…energy." Sirius felt his lip twitch up slightly; she was going to say 'life'.

"It's not fair," Adelaide whispered, staring down at her sisters face, and half of her wanted her to wake up, throw her arms around her, and cry out 'I'm Alive! I'm Alive!', and Adelaide chuckled at the ridiculous thought, but continued to speak, "You never did anything wrong, and I don't see how you deserved to die so young. You were so smart, you would have been a wonderful witch; I know it."

Then, soft guitars began to play from somewhere that no one could exactly pinpoint (it sounded as if it were coming from everywhere), and Adelaide sighed.

"That's my cue to sit my fat ass down," she said with a chuckle. She gently kissed Maddie's cheek, and began tearing up; she was so _cold._ She tore herself away quickly, before making her way back to her seat, her hand now tightly entwined with Sirius'.

'_I close my eyes, __  
only for a moment, and the moment's gone  
All my dreams, pass before my eyes, a curiosity_

_Dust in the wind, a__ll they are is dust in the wind'_

Sirius had to admit: muggle had good music. The song could easily lull someone to sleep with the soft violin and the sounds of the acoustic guitar. Adelaide tightened her grip on Sirius' hand, and leaned her head on his shoulder.

"The song only just came out," she whispered softly, "I heard it on the muggle radio the other day, and I knew Maddie would have loved it." He gently pressed his lips to her head.

'_Same old song,  
just a drop of water in an endless sea  
All we do, crumbles to the ground, though we refuse to see_

Dust in the wind, All we are is dust in the wind

Don't hang on,  
nothing lasts forever but the earth and sky  
It slips away, all your money won't another minute buy

Dust in the wind, All we are is dust in the wind'

Adelaide felt tears roll down her cheeks, but she didn't wipe them away. The last verse really stuck a chord inside of her (excusing the pun).

She barely listened to the priest as he spoke. To her, none of his words mattered. He hadn't known Maddie, and he was only doing what his job entailed. He might have grieved the loss of someone so young, but he didn't know her personally. His words did not matter.

It seemed like he dragged on for hours, and Adelaide couldn't help an annoyed sigh that left her. Sirius chuckled.

"Anxious?" he asked, and Adelaide shrugged, before nodding.

"I don't like him. He didn't know Maddie," she said simply, and Sirius nodded in understanding. Finally, the man silenced himself, and Sirius felt Adelaide stiffen against him as the beginning of the song came in, sounding very relaxing.

"This song is going to make me cry," she whispered, swallowing nervously. Sirius untangled their hands and wrapped his arm around her shoulder, and she snuggled closer to him, her eyes glued to the casket.

'_Don't worry about a thing,  
'Cause every little thing gonna be all right.  
Singin': "Don't worry about a thing,  
'Cause every little thing gonna be all right!"_

Rise up this mornin',  
Smiled with the risin' sun,  
Three little birds  
Pitch by my doorstep  
Singin' sweet songs  
Of melodies pure and true,  
Sayin', ("This is my message to you-ou-ou:")'

It was a song full of hope, but right now it just seemed to tear people to pieces. Adelaide softly sang the words, tears falling down as the words rang through her head. The song's lyrics didn't change at all, and simply repeated, but everyone still listened as if it were telling them the secret of life.

Maybe it was, but when the chorus repeated, signaling the end, Adelaide made her way up to the podium and placed her hands flat against the smooth plane of wood. She had no paper, as she promised herself, and looked nervous. The song faded, and she smiled.

"Hey," she said casually, "Well, I'm Maddie's older sister, as you all probably know." A few chuckles went through the crowd, and Adelaide shifted her weight from side to side before speaking again, sounding oddly casual for someone who had tears still rolling down her cheeks, "Well, I didn't write anything down before hand for me to read. My reasoning for that is simple enough: Maddie deserved better then prewritten words, preaching about the injustice of her death and of how she deserved more. Originally, I was going to talk about that.

"But I thought it over a whole lot. I barely slept, and while I busied myself doing all sorts of menial chores the muggle way, since it took less concentration and more time, I began to think over her life," she laughed, "And I'll be damned, she had a good one.

"I couldn't tell you how many times I went to the hospital because they were afraid she was going to die. The first time was when I thirteen, when she was first diagnosed with Leukemia. It was during the summer, so I didn't miss any classes, but I was completely terrified. I remembered how I thought back to two days prior where she had annoyed me to the point that I, in my big-headedness, told her that I wish she would just crawl into a hole and die.

"When I heard she was in the hospital, I felt like I was going to explode. I loathed my self, and I threw a fit when they wouldn't let me see her without an adult (daddy hadn't yet arrived). Then, a nurse came along and let me in," Adelaide smiled, "That nurse became the same woman who still takes care of my father, and took care of Maddie. It was Nurse Jessica Witte. She didn't have to stop by and let me in, and she didn't have to do anything. But she did, and I ran into the room where Maddie sat with an innocent smile on her face. I ran up to her, almost hugged her to tight, and told her that I lied, and I never wanted her to leave me.

"Unfortunately, that was only the beginning of those terrifying hospital trips. I ended up spending my fifteenth birthday in the hospital by her side," Adelaide smiled again and looked down at her hands, letting the memories fill her up until she began to cry again, but her voice was steady as she spoke.

"I remember once, we went on a muggle vacation. My dad had to cancel last minute because of his own poor health, and I took Maddie by myself, just last summer. We stayed in a muggle hotel, with a telly-vision, and I made the mistake of letting her watch what the muggles call a 'Soap Opera', which is a dramatic story usually involving murders, love triangles, fatherless children, and some form of necromancy (very confusing half of the time).

"I was fixing food, and Maddie came bounding in. I asked her how her day was, and she got really dramatic. She huffed, and said, 'I fell down, scrapped my knee, and I'm pregnant' with such sincerity I almost choked. Needless to say, I kept her away from soap opera's from then on." Everyone laughed, and Adelaide kept smiling softly, but she turned her head back up to everyone, and suddenly she looked upset.

"One thing I hate was that after mum died, her family completely ignored daddy. No one tried to comfort him after my mum died, and I was left to do that. I was left to do a lot of things, really, so I missed out on a lot. But I didn't want Maddie to go through that," she crossed her arms then, and her smile faded, "So I did what I thought would make her feel more normal. I didn't sign her up for fancy treatments or anything, instead I sent her to St. Mungos, in the children's ward. There, she hung out with children her own age. Really, it was just like a day care center, except she lived there.

"Every holiday break I got, I took her out of St. Mungos so she could spend it with her family. Really, it was like she was at school. I know that it wasn't the wisest thing to do, but I didn't want her confined to her bed. And people have called me stupid for my choices, but god dammit, she was only five years old! I wasn't going to take away her childhood, I would not be that selfish."

Everyone was silent as they clung to the words she said. She didn't look at anyone, and instead looked off to the side as she continued.

"Maybe it was selfish of me to keep her with me, maybe I just don't want to believe that it's partially my fault she died four days before her tenth birthday," she said, her voice surprisingly strong, "But even if it was, I wouldn't regret my actions. She grew up with people who loved her unconditionally, and she always knew that someone loved her. She may not have gotten everything she wanted, but she got everything she needed, and she was thankful for everyday that she lived.

"She may have been young, but she knew that she could die at any second. It was very scary how aware she was, but I guess having a sickly father and no mother might make you have to grow up a bit too fast, because I know that she was more mature then I was when I was nine, or even when I was thirteen." She bit her lip, and glanced at the crowd again, "and it's because of her that I not a spoiled brat. Every second of every day, I think about her. I have since I was thirteen and found out she might die, and I don't think I'm going to stop any time soon."

She uncrossed her arms, muttered a 'thank you', before making her way back to her seat. Sirius wrapped an arm around her and kissed the side of her head.

"You did a brilliant job," he said softly, and she blushed.

"I think I kind of dragged on," she admitted shyly, and then music began to play again as people stood to leave. They all remained in the pews and listened, knowing that now came the burial.

'_Someone told me long ago theres a calm before the __storm__,  
I know; its been comin for some time.  
When its over, so they say, it'll rain a sunny day,  
I know; shinin down like __water__.'_

Adelaide rested her head on Sirius' shoulders and watched as the casket was closed, and they levitated it behind them as they led it down to the graveyard. After a second, she stood and followed them, her friends following behind her. She could hear Lily crying, and she could still hear the music.

'_I want to know, have you ever seen the rain?  
I want to know, have you ever seen the r__ain  
Comin down on a sunny day?'_

Adelaide watched beside Sirius as they lowered the casket down into the dirt, the sun bearing down on them. The gravestone was smooth and new, with Madeline's name carved into the reflective surface, and the image of a forest underneath. She bit down on her lip, and again bit down too hard, causing it to bleed. She just ran her finger along the cut, smearing the blood, and then stared at her finger for a moment.

She smiled as the lyrics of the song rang through her head, and chuckled.

"What's so funny?" Sirius asked in her ear. She kept smiling.

"Listen to the lyrics," she said softly, as the songs chorus crepeated itself for a final time. She dropped her hand to her side and took her bottom lip into her mouth as the lyrics rang through her head, tears slowly falling down her face.

'_I want to know, have you ever seen the rain?  
I want to know, have you ever seen the rain  
Comin down on a sunny day?' _

-

**Disclaimer: **Harry Potter and all things concerning belong to J.K. Rowling. I own Adelaide Vicknair, Vanessa Wolfe, Caryn Gree, Elise Barnes, Madeline Vicknair, Annalisa Bertucci, Professor Sicily and Jean Vicknair. I also do not own any of the songs mentioned. I OWN TARDY.

**A/N:** Again, based off of my memories save for Aunt Bell. I just wanted some reason for Addy to get angry. And I know that Dust in the Wind came out in early 1978, but for the purpose of this story, it came out in 1977. It was hard to find songs, because the ones I wanted came out a little later then possible, so I had to tweak reality a bit.

**And PLEASE. Out of respect, do NOT use the poem from Madeline's funeral pamphlet. I wrote that in memory of my grandfather, and please, PLEASE ask before you use it. I hold it very dear to my heart**.

Yours truly,  
B.E.N.


	14. Restraint

**Wallflower**

**Chapter Fourteen: **Restraint

The week following the funeral seemed to stretch on and on, so by the end of it Adelaide just wanted to relax. It seemed, though, that no where in the castle was going to allow that. She attempted the Library, but with N.E.W.T.s and O.W.L.s coming up it was packed more then she was accustomed to. She tried the lawn, by the lake, but it was still to cold to be considered relaxing. The kitchens weren't bad, but the smell of food and the bustling of house elves distracted her. Even her dorm was getting out of control with Caryn throwing fits as she fell into panic attacks over the smallest things.

It may have still been January, but people could feel the stress hitting them.

So, that explained why she was relaxing in the Boy's dormitories, curled up beside Sirius. Her hand was resting on his chest and her head on his arm, slipping in and out of consciousness. Sirius jus reclined with one arm around her shoulders and the other resting on top of her hand. He was staring at the ceiling, his mind wandering randomly, never really staying on one thought for long.

"It's nice to find a place that's quiet," Adelaide murmured, "I'm getting tired of listening to Caryn bitch about how terrible her life is." Sirius chuckled.

"I can tell," he said with an amused smile, "you tend to grumble about her during the first class of the day." Adelaide blushed.

"Sorry," she said bashfully, "She's just keeping me from getting a good night sleep." Sirius gently rubbed her shoulder.

"It's fine; I don't mind," he said truthfully. She sighed, but it turned into a yawn, causing tears to prick at the corner of her eyes. They were silent for a moment, when her hand tightened on his chest and she buried her head into his arm as best she could. She was silent for a few seconds, her breath a bit harsher then normal, and she swallowed as a tear escaped from her eyes.

"I miss Maddie," she whispered suddenly, catching his attention, "I feel like I never got to grieve for her. I mean, I know I cried a lot, but never…I never got a chance to get over the fact that she's dead. It hasn't really set in and I still…I don't know anymore, I just can't stop thinking about her. I was so busy, I just was running away from facing her. I know that I saw her in the casket, but I couldn't grasp anything. That's why I planned everything so meticulously; so I didn't have to think about her. I was running away."

Sirius sat up and gently ran his fingers through her hair, but just allowed her to keep talking.

"I've been so out of it all week," she whispered, "and I'm thinking about her twenty-four seven. I just…I miss her…so much."

She pushed herself and sat beside him, looking at the ceiling absently while Sirius put his arm back around her and pulled her close. She sighed, and began to cry. It wasn't the wild sobbing that she had first done, but it was just a steady stream of tears, punctuated by shaky breaths. It was about five minutes before she calmed down and laughed dryly.

"I needed that," she said, smiling at Sirius weakly. He returned the gesture, and after Adelaide whipped away her tears, she smiled at him and gently kissed his cheek, "Thank you for listening," she said happily. He grinned cheekily,

"And a kiss on the cheek's all I get?" he asked. She giggled, before leaning back in and pressing her lips against his. She kissed him slowly, and he rested his hand on the small of her back as she twisted her body towards him.

The tempo suddenly changed, and his hand caused electricity to shoot down her spine and shudder against him. The kiss began to heat up, and she placed her hand on his chest and got onto her knees, her lips remaining connected with his. What started innocently was turning dangerous, and their minds could only focus on each other. Sirius entangled his hands into her hair and tugged lightly, eliciting a moan from her that cause chills to travel along his spine.

She pressed closer and her hand began to trail downwards when he seemed to snap back to his senses. He gently ended the kiss, to her confusion, and her hand stopped in its descent.

"What?" she asked in confusion.

"If we kept kissing much longer," he explained, "things would have started to go father then you would have wanted." She blinked, before a blush spread across her face.

"S-Sorry," she stuttered, taking her bottom lip into her mouth briefly, and they were silent for a moment before she smiled at him, "Thank you for stopping." He shrugged.

"You were very clear on your beliefs," he said with a shrug, "and I respect you enough to keep what you want in mind." She smiled at him and curled back into his arms.

"Thanks," she murmured again, "It means a lot for you to say that."

-

"So, you came,"

Her smooth voice broke through the silence and caused Peter to jump in surprised, his heart pattering fiercely in his chest. He let out a breath as he turned to eye the Italian carefully. Most of him did not trust her, but part of him wanted to. She remembered whatever he told her from their first conversation in Transfiguration four long months ago, and she seemed to actually care. So, with determination, he began to speak.

"You say that James and Remus will be left out of this?" he said, attempting to sound strong, but he came off as nervous. She smiled and slipped out of the shadows, waltzing up to him. It was odd for him to have to look up to see her, but not completely unwelcome; he was used to his height, but that only made it easier to be intimidated. Besides, she was only an inch taller then him.

"Of course, Peter, darling," she said with a wave of her hand, "They will be perfectly fine." He didn't notice the gleam in her eye as she thought happily, '_for now, that is.'_

"Th-Then I agree to your terms," Peter said. Annalisa barely kept back the laughter that was going to burst forth from her chest, but instead smiled in what she knew would be a joyous manner.

"That makes me so happy," she cooed, making her way foreword and kissing his forehead. Sometimes she hated her acting ability; she'd much rather be snogging one of her many Slytherin boy toys then flirting endlessly with the rather weak-minded Gryffindor before her. The thought of Mulciber caused herself to heat up in all the right ways.

But no matter, she thought to herself, she could go and have a good time later. Now it was time to work.

"See, here is what I want…"

-

Adelaide was relieved when they were dismissed from Defense, their last class for the day, and fought down the urge to skip back to the common room. Sirius' firm hold on her hand, though, kept her back and made her heart flutter in her chest. They were fast walkers, naturally, and while Lily and James took a detour to the kitchens and Remus stopped by the library, Adelaide and Sirius were free to walk as fast as they wished back to the common room.

"Have you seen Peter recently, other then classes, that is?" Adelaide asked as they stepped through the portrait hole. Sirius shrugged.

"I've seen him with Remus and James sometimes," he responded, taking a seat on the couch with Adelaide beside him, "but I haven't gotten to talk to him; I think the N.E.W.T.s are really getting to him." Adelaide frowned.

"He hasn't shown up for tutoring either," she said, before biting on her lip, "Do you think he's ok?" Sirius shrugged again, watching the fire with an absent expression.

"Who knows with Peter anymore," he responded, and she realized that he didn't really want to talk about him; she pushed it, though.

"Why are you upset with Peter?" she asked softly, watching his reaction. His jaw clinched for a moment, but it relaxed again.

"I'm not upset with him," he lied, and she frowned and gently ran her thumb over his hand.

"You haven't spoken to him," she continued, and Sirius sighed in anger and annoyance.

"Don't you remember what he said when…when Maddie died?" he asked, turning his attention back to her. She sighed.

"It's fine," she comforted, "I don't mind; he didn't know her, as he said."

"But he is our friend!" Sirius protested, "He should have gone out of courtesy and common principle!" Adelaide suddenly glared at him, and pointed her finger at him.

"Listen: do not let me come in the way of your friendships," she ordered in a surprisingly fierce voice, "I will not cause yours and Peter's relationship to crumble because of me. Your friends should be more important than your girlfriend." She kept eye contact with him, and he sighed after a minute.

"You're right," he said reluctantly, "I'm being ridiculous." She sighed, and smiled slightly.

"You aren't being ridiculous," she countered, "You're being protective; and I think you need sleep."

"But I'm not tired," he protested. She raised an eyebrow.

"You're cranky," she said simply, "I know because I heard you muttering about homework during Charms. You don't have to go to sleep, just go up to your dorm and relax for a minute." He sighed in annoyance.

"I am relaxed," he said with a grin, "I'm setting by you; how can I not be relaxed?" She snorted, before pushing him to get up. He didn't budge. So, she stuck out her tongue, causing him to laugh and curl deeper into the couch. So, she gave up for now and curled against him, watching the fire.

They were there for about ten minutes, before Sirius sighed and began to get up.

"I'm putting my things in my room," he said, "I'll forget about them if I don't do it now." He shouldered his bag, and Adelaide sprawled out across the couch with a grin.

"I'll keep your seat warm!" she said happily. He snorted, and made his way upstairs. As soon as he disappeared form sight, the portrait swung open and in walked Peter. Adelaide saw her chance, and took it, leaping up from her spot and hurrying over.

"Peter, if I could have a word?" she asked politely. He seemed surprised, and nodded. She smiled successfully, before looking at him with concern.

"Peter, you haven't showed up for tutoring," she said slowly, "is everything okay?" he nodded.

"Y-Yeah, it's just," he thought quickly, and quickly saddened his expression, "My grandmother died over winter break, and I've been a bit down; that was why I didn't want to go to your sisters funeral." Adelaide felt sympathy fill her, unaware that he was lying through his teeth.

"I'm so sorry," she said softly, and for some reason it aggravated Peter.

"I don't want your sympathy," he said suddenly, and she blinked in surprise.

"I…I just thought…"

"Well you thought wrong!" he snapped angrily, as his pent up emotions began to take control, "You barely have time for your friends anymore, it's always 'Sirius this, Sirius that' and I'm sick of it!" Adelaide looked at him in confusion.

"I…I pay attention to my friends," she said slowly, "You're the one who ignores me." He laughed bitterly,

"That's because I was sick of being told how wonderful Sirius was," he snapped, "I liked you, Adelaide, and you turned me down for my best friend, and that hurt." Adelaide felt herself getting angry; she never talked about Sirius! Their relationship was exactly that; _theirs_. It was no ones business if they dated each other, or what they did. So, to avoid confrontation she didn't talk about what they did, and only shared anything with Lily (and that was only when she was asked).

"What's so wrong with me going out with the guy I fancy?" she snapped, choosing to keep that in and choose not to comment on it, "It was never my intention to hurt you! Why would I hurt my friend?"

"You knew I liked you!" Peter said angrily, "But you still went and started dating my friend!"

"Why are you doing this!" she screamed angrily, pulling on her hair in aggravation.

By now, Sirius had returned and heard her scream. He hurried over, and attempted to ask what was going on, but was cut off by Peter retorting angrily.

"Because you don't think about what people are like, you only go after looks! You don't care who you hurt to get what you want!" Peter said angrily, and Adelaide felt her chest clench in anger. So, she did something she had never done before.

She raised her hand, and slapped him. The sharp sound of her hand connecting with his cheek reverberated through the room, and silence consumed everyone as they watched curiously. Adelaide had hot tears pouring down her face, and Peter turned to look at her in surprise, only to see the tip of her wand pointed at him, and her eyes in a harsh glare.

"Don't you dare," she spat, "don't you _dare_ question my morals, or my reasoning. Never say that I don't care, _ever_." She started when Sirius wrapped his hand around her wrist, and gently lowered her arm.

"Calm down, Adelaide," he said, though he also wanted to hex Peter into oblivion, "Lets go get some fresh air."

The portrait swung open and James and Lily stepped in to complete silence, and Adelaide jerked her arm away from Sirius and pointed her finger at Peter angrily, her eyes flaming.

"I was nice to you," she whispered softly, "I did a lot for you, and I never asked for anything other then kindness in response. Do not expect me to go easy on you, and do not expect me to help you. If you continued to treat your friends this way you will wind up alone, and hating yourself. I will not be there when that happens."

And without another word, she walked out of the room with angry tears still pouring down her face. Sirius easily caught up with her and gently placed a hand on her shoulder. She whipped around, and hugged him tightly, and attempted to calm herself.

"Sirius? Adelaide?" Remus asked as he turned a corner, spotting them easily, "What's wrong?" Sirius grimaced.

"Ask Peter," he answered, "It's his fault."

He gently moved Adelaide past his now thoroughly confused friend, and they made their way to the Kitchens where she immediately began to eat a large slice of cake, poor Lobby completely worried for her.

"Don't let what he said get to you," Sirius said softly, "He's wrong." She whimpered, but just took another bite of cake.

"I'm planning on getting fat," she murmured, "and I'll enjoy every second of it." Sirius laughed, and was relieved to see small smile cross over her face.

"I'm sure Peter is just having a hard day," he responded with a comforting smile, "Don't let it get to you; he'll come around."

-

**Disclaimer: **Harry Potter and all things concerning belong to J.K. Rowling. I own Adelaide Vicknair, Vanessa Wolfe, Caryn Gree, Elise Barnes, Madeline Vicknair, Annalisa Bertucci, Professor Sicily and Jean Vicknair.

**A/N:** Even though this is a really short chapter, I feel it was important because by restraining himself and stopping things before they got too far, Sirius showed that he respects her and her beliefs (which is abstinence, FYI). PLUS OMG ANNALISA'S A SLUT!!! AND PETER PISSES ME OFF!!!!! MEOW! :3

Yours truly,  
B.E.N.


	15. Valentines Day

**Wallflower**

**Chapter Fifteen: **Valentines Day

'_Dear Daddy;_

_I hope you're doing ok. I know it must be hard knowing that Maddie's gone, but for her sake I hope you're holding up. It's been rough for me too, but I still worry about you every day. I have my friends to keep me occupied, and you have to stay at home all day with only Nurse Witte to keep you company (not that I would be complaining)._

_Sirius is treating me well, I'll have you know, and has been there for me through thick and thin. While one of my friends recently…how do I put this…blew up? I guess that works. But while one of my friends and I had an argument, Sirius has done a rather good job at remaining friends with the both of us, though he had some issues at first._

_Lily, James, and Remus are doing fine as well, and they send their love. Don't bother writing back if you don't feel up to it, I completely understand. Just hang in there and I'll see you for Easter hols._

_Love,_

_Adelaide'_

Adelaide smiled as she finished her letter and quickly sealed it, before attaching it to one of the school owls legs. She smiled as she watched it fly off into the horizon, before deciding that the smell of the owlery was a bit to strong, and began her descent down stairs with a small smile. Today was the thirteenth and a Hogsmeade trip, even though it was a Sunday. She and Sirius had made plans to hang out in the Three Broomsticks (since they had both refused to step foot into Madam Puddifoot's).

She made it back to the common room with no trouble, and when she stepped into the room it was abuzz with chatter and several girls squealing as they thought of their day (most likely planning on going to afore mentioned store). She made her way up to her dormitory, which by now was empty, and was greeted by complete silence. She smiled in relief before making her way to the showers; smelling like owl droppings wasn't the best way to start off a Valentines Day (even if it wasn't really Valentines Day).

When she returned downstairs, dressed in casual clothes, she was greeted by the sight of all of the Marauders joking heartily with each other, as if the past few months hadn't happened. As much as Peter angered her, she was happy that they all got back on with their friendships (though it took more then a subtle push to get Sirius to stop acting like a prat). Lily was chatting with Elise and Caryn, and Adelaide walked over to hear Caryn trying to decide who she should spend her day with.

"-Stevens asked, and he's a really good snog, but the things Parker can do with his fingers-"

Adelaide managed to keep down a grimace, but otherwise joined in the conversation effortlessly (mainly by staying silent and blocking out the images that came to mind) and felt like jumping Sirius when he walked over and managed to save her from the torture that was Caryn talking about who was a better shag, and going into details that Adelaide wished she could forget.

"As interesting as this sounds," Sirius said with a grin, "I'm going to have to steal Addy here away so I can shower her with affection." With a smile to her friends, Adelaide quickly latched onto Sirius' arm and walked with him out of the common room.

"You have no idea how grateful I am," she said as the portrait swung shut behind them, "That was the single most horrific conversation I've ever had to take part in; I hope James takes a leaf out of your book and saves Lily." Sirius laughed and laced their fingers together.

"I was actually going to head down to Hogsmeade now," he explained, "Would you care to join me?" she snorted.

"For some reason, you being gentlemanly is kind of odd," she said with a smile, "But sure, I would love to join you on this fine evening." Sirius just grinned, and they made their way through the castle and onto the grounds in relative silence, though they did have a run in with Peeves who tried to throw water balloons at them. Fortunately for them, they ducked in time and they collided with some first years. Unfortunately for the first years, they had to go back and get new clothes.

The Three Broomsticks was unusually empty, and the owner, Madam Jasmine, looked less then pleased. When she spotted them, though, she beamed.

"Thank goodness there are some students who don't care for that pink excuse for a coffee shop," she said happily, "What would you two like? Butterbeer, I suppose."

"That would be lovely," Adelaide said with a smile. Madam Jasmine hurried off and returned in seconds with two glasses of butterbeer. They thanked her before making their way to one of the booths in the back, and the air was a nice contrast from the bitter cold outside.

After drinking several more glasses of butterbeer they made their way over to Honeydukes, and Adelaide ended up buying about fifty Sugar Quills and several Chocolate Frogs.

"It's one of those days," she said with a dramatic sigh, "It seems I can never get enough chocolate on the holidays.

"But Sugar Quills aren't chocolate," Sirius reminded her. She shrugged.

"So?"

They were passing by The Three Broomsticks near the end of the day, and to their surprise they spotted Peter chatting with Annalisa Bertucci.

"Isn't she a Slytherin?" Sirius asked after a moment. Adelaide nodded as she took a bite of her chocolate frog.

"Yeah, she's his partner in Transfiguration. It's nice to see them getting along," Adelaide mused her arm linked with his, "Though I can't say it isn't surprising; She usually goes with one of her recent flings to Hogsmeade. Last time she went with Parker, and Caryn spotted them and returned to the room to have a fit about how flakey men were." Sirius laughed, shaking his head before pulling her back towards the castle where they planned on lounging around in the common room and eating so much chocolate it made them sick. Of course, they didn't mind if the 'getting sick' part never happened.

-

"So, Adelaide," Lily said slyly, glancing over at Adelaide as they took their seat in their first class of the day: Potions.

"Yes?" Adelaide asked slowly, having a faint idea where this was heading.

"How was your day in Hogsmeade yesterday?"

"It was nice," she responded with shrug, "we went to the Three Broomsticks-"

"Not Madam Puddifoots?"

"-I would kill myself if I was ever made to step foot in that pink shop of horrors. Then we went to Honeydukes and I stocked up on Sugar Quills and Chocolate Frogs."

"Is that it?" Lily asked with a frown. Adelaide shrugged.

"We weren't back to the common room and just relaxed the rest of the day," she concluded, "Valentine's Day is not like Christmas, and I hate it anyways. It was nice to have a boyfriend who didn't expect you to cling to him like a baby and beg for all these different things. It's just an average day spent together doing overall average things."

"Uh-huh," Lily said, "Well, as interesting as that may be," She was cut off as Professor Slughorn entered the room dressed in purple and pink robes that made Adelaide gag and a smile that didn't bode well with several of the classes less-girly students.

"Good Morning!" he said happily, "Seeing as how today is such a joyful day, I've decided we are going to work on an advanced potion-"

"Oh Dear Merlin," Adelaide whispered.

"-that you may find quite familiar: Amortentia!"

Several girls squealed in excitement, several others just smiled, and several others groaned and felt like stabbing themselves with their quill (Adelaide being one of them). Professor Slughorn smiled and kept talking in his jovial manner.

"Now, since Amortentia is banned at Hogwarts," there were several girly sighs of regret, "You will not be allowed to take any potion from this room, and I will make sure of that. I have placed several charms on every exit that I created specifically for the job of detecting any potion that is to leave the room." Queue even more regretful sighs. Adelaide rolled her eyes.

"Miss Vicknair!"

"Shit," she whispered.

"Since you seem so keen on the subject," Slughorn said with a smile, "And have such refined potioning abilities,"

"Lily's much better," she protested half-heartedly.

"Then you can delve into the characteristics of Amortentia!" Adelaide almost smiled in relief; she had gotten scared for a moment.

"Amortentia," she almost gagged just by saying the name, "is characterized by its mother-of-pearl sheen, the way the steam spirals upwards, and the varying scent." Slughorn smiled.

"Good, Good! Five points for Gryffindor!" he said, "Now, Miss Vicknair, if you could just step up here for a moment…"

"What? Why?" she asked quickly, but she dutifully made her way up to the front of the class where there was the pre-arranged cauldron full of the silvery liquid, though the scent hadn't yet reached the classes seats, a shield of sorts keeping the scent back.

"Now, if you could take a whiff of the potion," Slughorn said jovially, "Then you could tell us what it smells like to you." Adelaide sighed and felt the urge to beat the Professor over the head with a broomstick.

"Of course, Professor," she said with a smile, and it seemed everyone but Slughorn realized how peeved she was. So, she quickly smelled the potion (ignoring Lily's grin) and allowed her mind to classify each scent.

"Well, Miss Vicknair?"

"It smells like…Leather," several people giggled, but Adelaide ignored them and tried to name the other scents; she had smelled it recently, that she knew...she wanted to exclaim when she remembered, but instead settled for saying "Christmas trees, and…something else…" she paused, but in reality she knew exactly what it was and wished for the first time that Sirius told her what shampoo he used. Her face turned red, and she sighed before murmuring, "Sirius' hair."

"What was that?" Slughorn asked, having zoned out for a second while she tried to remember the third scents name. Adelaide blushed again.

"Sirius' hair," she said with a sigh. Slughorn smiled happily, oblivious to the chuckling that went around the room.

"Of course, of course!" he said, "I knew it would have something to do with Mr. Black-"

"Of course you did,"

"-seeing as how you've been dating for about four months now," He clapped his hands together, "Five points for Gryffindor for being a good sport. You can sit down now," she did so quickly, and slumped down beside Lily who was smiling.

"I don't see why this bothers you so much," she said with a wave of her hand, "Everyone knows you're dating."

"But what I like only concerns me," she murmured, "You know how much I like privacy."

Lily made no comment, and soon they began to work on the potion in silence. Adelaide was still blushing, when a note flipped onto her desk. She raised an eyebrow and opened it, to see Sirius' easily recognizable handwriting.

'_Don't worry; I like how my hair smells, too. : D'_

Adelaide couldn't help but smile, but without looking at him she quickly jotted back, '_you egotistical bastard' _and tossed it back as Slughorn went to his office. She heard him laugh, and she turned a bit to see him wink at her. She smiled, but turned back around only to feel a tap on her shoulder. She turned to see Mulciber smiling, and a chill went down her spine.

"Yes?" she asked politely.

"I was wondering if your Amortentia smells only like the guys you've shagged," From beside him, Avery snickered, and Snape turned his head to look at Mulciber with disgust, while Adelaide clenched her fist. Mulciber turned back around to smirk at her when her fist connected with his face, sending him flying back into Avery, who caught him with a grunt. Snape snickered softly to himself, while the others watched on in confusion, Lily gaping like a fish. Adelaide grabbed Mulciber by his shirt and pointed her wand at his throat.

"You might want to think before you speak," she said angrily. She let him go, pushing him back into Avery, before erecting a shield between the two of them. He tried to move foreword, but was forced back into Avery for a third time. Adelaide eyes him curiously.

"Do you and Avery need some privacy?" she asked in an innocent voice. Mulciber glared, but returned to his potions. Adelaide kept up the smile before she turned back to her potion, chopping up her ingredients with a bit more anger then was considered necessary.

"You shouldn't have done that," Lily whispered as she worked on her potion, "You know that they're all Death Eaters."

"I'd like to see them try and harm me," Adelaide said in a false cheerful voice, "You've seen me duel, and you know that I'm one tough cookie." Lily sighed.

"Yes, but they have to be at least somewhat competent if they managed to become Death Eaters," she whispered, "You should be more careful; You're lucky I'm your friend, or I would have given you a detention for that!" Adelaide laughed.

"You enjoyed seeing me punch him as much as I did," Adelaide whispered, glancing over and seeing Avery attempting to get Mulciber to let him reset his nose, which was bleeding heavily, "Think Slughorn will believe them if they said it was me?" Lily laughed.

"Never; he loves you almost as much as he loves me," Lily murmured. Adelaide smiled, and patted her hands back in reassurance.

"I'll be fine," she responded, "Besides; I really think red is his color."

-

"She fucking punched me in the nose!" Mulciber exclaimed angrily to an only half-interested Annalisa. She sighed and gently massaged his shoulders. They were setting in the Slytherin common room, and Annalisa was setting on a couch with Mulciber leaning against her legs on the floor in front of her.

"So I've heard," Annalisa purred, watching the top of the head in interest; Mulciber was definitely an attractive man with chiseled features and dark hair that swooped into his eyes in just the right way. She much preferred this to the cowering boy that was Peter, who was nervous around her almost all the time. She sighed at the comparison before lowering her mouth to his ear, her lips brushing against the sensitive flesh.

"How about this," she purred, trailing her well-manicured hands down his chest and wrapping around him, "You take me upstairs to the boys dormitory, kick everyone out, and take all your aggressions out on me?" Her tongue flicked out and brushed against his ear, and she felt a shiver move down his spine.

"I think that may be one of the best ideas you've ever had," he growled, turning suddenly, "But I think I'd much rather take you right here in the middle of the common room." Annalisa giggled, liking the idea of it but knowing better.

"Don't you care that you may scar some poor little first years?" she cooed, lacing her fingers together behind his neck. He got up on his knees and pressed her into the couch, a smirk moving across his face as he enjoyed the empowering feeling he got from this vantage point.

"I think they've seen worse," he murmured, crashing his lips down onto hers for a second before trailing his lips to her neck. Annalisa sighed blissfully and let her head roll back and her eyes to close.

"You're so much better then that boy, Peter," she murmured, "sometimes makes me hate my job; at least I don't have to become that twat Adelaide for him anymore; apparently they had a disagreement, though he managed to repair his relationship with the others." Mulciber hummed and trailed his kisses further down towards her chest while his fingers worked on unbuttoning her blouse. She sighed again.

"Sometimes I hate my job," she murmured, "but then I remember that Peter and I only see each other once a week, which means I have six more days to spend with you."

"Do your little toys know that we're dating?" Mulciber murmured, his hand straying to hers, where an inconspicuous ring glittered innocently in the light. She smiled, for once actually expressing her true emotions, and sighed blissfully.

"No, but I haven't had the urge to see any of them in at least three years," she responded, "but of course, that doesn't mean I haven't been with any of them. I do have my job to do." Mulciber growled and gripped her chin, jerking her face to his and his eyes burning furiously.

"Have they touched you like this?" he asked angrily, his hand trailing down and gripping her thigh tightly, "Have they been with you like I have? Have they tasted you?"

"Never," she said truthfully, her own eyes burning, "Only you can touch me like that. Anyone who tried would find themselves unable to walk for a month." He grinned, and quickly moved his mouth back to her neck.

"Good," he murmured, his hands moving across her body and leaving trails of fire, causing her to gasp, "Because one day you will be mine, and mine alone, and you will never have to touch another puny Gryffindor again."

-

**Disclaimer: **Harry Potter and all things concerning belong to J.K. Rowling. I own Adelaide Vicknair, Vanessa Wolfe, Caryn Gree, Elise Barnes, Madeline Vicknair, Annalisa Bertucci, Professor Sicily and Jean Vicknair.

**A/N:** Haha, Leather, Christmas, and Sirius' hair. Sounds sexy. BAH HAH!!!! Bad thoughts, bad! And Annalisa's sexy. I would so be one of her boy toys…except, you know…a girl. I think I might just make a side story about Annalisa, mainly surrounding her odd relationships and more importantly how that affects her and Mulciber's relationship. I BET YOU DIDN'T SEE THAT ONE COMING!!!! ANNALISA HAS A HEART!! AND MULCIBER DOESN'T LOOK LIKE A CREEPER!! He's a sexy beast. BAH HAH!!

Mmm, that scene made me wanna bump the rating up. ::wink wink:: But seriously, this might just be my favorite passage from this story, other then the New Years scene in chapter ten. I just love how angry it was. BAH HAH!!

…don't question my laugh.

OK, I have a question…and it's kind of rhetorical, so don't feel obligated to answer…but see I noticed that…(wow this is embarrassing, I mean, I can write a lime/lemon without getting flustered, but when it comes to me….wow)…when I masturbate my leg twitches. When I scratch my dog, his leg twitches. So…does that means that the dog is aroused?

…I can't believe I just asked that. ((bullet to the brain))

Yours truly,  
B.E.N.


	16. The Passing

**Wallflower**

**Chapter Sixteen: **The Passing

With April came Easter Holidays, and this time only Sirius accompanied Adelaide home this time around. Lily had asked her parents permission and went with James to spend the holiday there, while Remus remained at Hogwarts to give Peter some company. Adelaide and Lily had managed to snag a compartment while Sirius and James said their goodbyes to Peter and Remus, and now they were sitting peacefully and passing jokes between each other much like they had during Christmas, but Adelaide seemed a bit out of it.

"What's wrong?" Sirius whispered into her ear while James and Lily chatted amongst themselves. Adelaide smiled sadly.

"I don't want to go home," she whispered, "But daddy knows that I'm going to come; it's all he has to look foreword to anymore. It'll be so weird, though."

"I get it," Sirius murmured, before smiling and changing the subject, "So have you decided on becoming a Healer?" She smiled and nodded.

"Yes," she said with relief, "I'm planning on going to St. Mungo's University." Sirius raised an eyebrow, but she continued, "Nurse Witte put in a word for me over Christmas."

St. Mungo's University was well known for producing some of the finest Healers known to the Wizarding world. St. Mungo created it and became a professor there so he could make sure there was never a need for Healers. Not only was it well known, but it was expensive and extremely selective about it's students. From what Sirius had heard, you had to get all O's to make it in with a virtually clean record. Rumors said that if anyone got lower then an E on their N.E.W.T.s they would be set aside and chosen as a last resort if they didn't meet the quota.

"From what I've heard about Mungo's you'll need it," Sirius commented, "And that's not based on your intelligence; I've heard they are very picky."

"And Nurse Witte graduated at the top of her class," Adelaide said with a smile, "I think that they'll take her recommendation seriously." Sirius refrained from making a lame joke, and just smiled before wrapping his arm around her shoulder.

"I don't have any doubt that you'll do brilliantly," he commented, "You're bound to get all O's, no problem, and you'll be put in Hogwarts Hall of Fame."

"We have a Hall of Fame?" she asked, and he laughed.

"They'll make one after you," he said with a wink. She laughed, and leaned in to his arms.

"So, what're you planning on doing after Hogwarts?" she asked him, glancing up to watch his facial expressions, "don't tell me you wanna be a healer too." He laughed.

"I was thinking about Quidditch, seeing as how I'm the teams beater, but decided against it and decided I want to be an auror," he explained. Adelaide hummed,

"I'd want you to be an auror; lack of manic flying bludgers is always a good thing," she joked, and he laughed.

"Yeah, decided that I don't need a concussion," he said.

The rest of the trip passed by quickly, and they said their goodbyes before Adelaide and Sirius apparated to her house. They went in and for some reason, the house was colder then before. Not physically, but it sent an unpleasant chill down her spine.

"I half expect her to come running down the stairs," she whispered softly, "But I know that she isn't going to come." Sirius just pulled laced his fingers with her, and she turned to smile at him, biting her lip.

"Come on, let's go say hi to dad," she said before turning and leading him down to the two-door room and then to her fathers room. She went in and smiled at her father, but her smile faded quickly as she saw how pale and thin he was.

"Daddy?" she asked, and she got no response. Sirius felt his throat close up, and Adelaide let go of his hand and hurried foreword, placing her hand on his neck. His breathing was shallow, and his pulse was unusually slow, "Sirius, we need to get to the Hospital." She took out her wand and quickly used a levitating charm to levitate her father to his chair, still in his pajamas, and she quickly began searching through the night stand, and pulled out a ratty map, magically attaching her fathers hand to the edge, and looking at Sirius.

"Come on," she whispered, and he hurried over and placed his hand on the map, already guessing that it was a port key. She gulped, before pointing her wand at the map and activating it.

They arrived at St. Mungo's in a flash, and almost immediately Nurse Witte was beside them, looking panicked.

"I was just there this morning," she explained, un-sticking Jeans hand and quickly rolling him off, "I was alerted as soon as the port key went off and was waiting here; you two need to go into the waiting room and I'll be right with you."

The two stopped following her and watched the nurse hurry down the hall. Adelaide clung to Sirius' arm, and he slowly led her to a nearby bench, where they took a seat slowly and watched the wall in front of him.

"I'm sorry," Sirius murmured, "This wasn't the homecoming I was expecting." They shared a dry laugh, and Adelaide felt as if she wanted to puke.

"This hasn't been a very promising year so far, has it?" she asked softly, and Sirius sighed.

"Remember how we thought this year was going to be great?" he asked, "When all of us were friends, there was no animosity between us, and we were just having a good time?" she smiled sadly.

"Yeah," she whispered, before laughing, "Maybe we shouldn't have started going out; that's where it all started." Sirius shook his head and pulled her closer to him, and she buried her head into his neck.

"Nah; that makes it all worth it," he whispered, kissing the top of her head, "we'll just keep taking what life throws at us, and take it with a grin. Of course, if it pisses us of we can always flip Life off; just yell out real loud, 'Fuck you, Life!' and go on with our lives." Adelaide giggled, and sighed as she stared straight ahead of her.

"I'm not as distraught as I thought I would be," she whispered, "I've known this was coming, and after Maddie died I knew it would be soon."

"Hey, he's not dead yet," Sirius said lightly, "We just have to wait it out and hope that you get your chance to say goodbye this time."

"If he does die I'm not telling the others until after the funeral," she said, "They've already done so much for me, and I want their Easter Hols to be happy."

"Lily will throw a fit," Sirius said with a grin, and Adelaide laughed.

"Yeah, I know, but that's okay. It's nothing she would kill me over,"

They ended up spending the night at the hospital on that bench, waiting for news from Nurse Witte. It wasn't until noon that she appeared again, with a small frown.

"He's alive," she said, "But he doesn't have long. I suggest you say your goodbyes now." Adelaide sighed, tears overflowing and dropping into her lap.

"You've told me that about ten times now," she whispered, "but how likely is it that this is it?"

"He has a ninety percent chance of dieing," Nurse Witte said solemnly, "He's barely hanging on."

Without another word Adelaide and Sirius stood and followed Nurse Witte down to her fathers room, where he was laying with a glazed look in his eyes as he stared at the ceiling. Adelaide just took a seat by his side, and his head turned. Nurse Witte left the room, and Sirius remained beside the door.

"Hey daddy," she whispered. He smiled softly.

"Hey, Lady Girl," he responded in a raspy voice, "I knew I'd see you. I was counting down the days until I saw you again; it got so lonely at the house."

"I know," she whispered, "It's so odd being there without you or Maddie." Jean sighed, and looked up at the ceiling.

"I'm going to die, aren't I?" he asked, and Adelaide closed her eyes tightly before nodding.

"Yeah," she whispered, "Yeah, you are." He sighed in resigned defeat, and kept his eyes on the ceiling.

"How many times have we said our goodbyes?" he asked, "Nine?"

"Ten," She corrected with a wry smile, "I guess this makes number eleven, huh?" he laughed.

"It's funny how every time you say goodbye, it changes," he commented, "How's that boy of yours? He treating you alright?" Adelaide glanced over and saw Sirius grin, and she laughed.

"Oh, he's terrible," she said sarcastically, "worse guy I've ever met." Jean laughed, hearing the sarcasm, and spotted Sirius at the door.

"What're you doing standing so far away?" he asked, "Come over here and help my daughter if she starts to cry."

Sirius laughed, and did as instructed, placing a hand on her shoulder with a smile, though it didn't quite reach his eyes.

"I'm already crying," Adelaide said wryly, "So much for that." Jean laughed, and looked over at the two with wise eyes.

"You've been such a good kid," he whispered, "and I couldn't be prouder of you. I'm sorry I pushed you when you were little; I only wanted what I thought was best for you."

"It's OK," she whispered, "I know that."

They were in there for a bout an hour when her dad fell asleep, and then Nurse Witte stepped in and demanded they go home and get some rest. Adelaide put up a fight for a while, but gave in after Nurse Witte promised to keep them posted on what happened. The quickly apparated back, and Adelaide immediately headed up for a shower, while Sirius grabbed their things and placed them in their rooms, claiming the one he used last time. Nothing had changed, including Maddie's room. The only disturbance was the covers, which hadn't been touched since her death. To his surprise, he found a House Elf setting at the small table, where a tea set was still setting out.

"Poor Miss Maddie," the house elf said sadly, blowing his nose noisily, before he turned and saw Sirius there, "Oh! You's must be Master Sirius! I am Nobbie, sir."

"Er…are you ok?" Sirius asked slowly, "You look kind of…distraught." Nobbie blew his nose again.

"Nobbie is just grieving, sirs," he said solemnly, "Miss Maddie was a good mistress, yeses she was." He tucked his napkin into his clothes (they looked like some old rags sewn together) and smiled a watery smile, "How can Nobbie help Master Sirius?"

"Um, I was just putting our things away," Sirius said. Nobbie nodded enthusiastically.

"Of course! Nobbie is sorry Nobbie wasn't there to take them up. Nobbie was in here cleaning Miss Maddie's room." Sirius nodded awkwardly.

"Well…I'll just be going now," he murmured, turning and leaving the room.

"Goodbye, Master Sirius!" Nobbie called from behind him.

The next day was vary much the same, and after they ate breakfast prepared by Nobbie, they returned to the hospital and they were greeted by Nurse Witte, who lead them to Jeans room with a solemn expression. They didn't say much, but when they opened the door Jean was asleep, his heart beat going steadily. They took their seats and sat there in silence for an hour, before Adelaide sighed.

"I wanted him to go to my wedding," she whispered, "I wanted him to be there when I had my first kid, or my first job. It…it's going to be so hard to go through all those milestones in my life and know he's not there."

"I'm sorry," he whispered, "but there isn't much we can do." Adelaide sighed and nodded.

"I know," she whispered, and smiled slightly, "I'm going to miss him calling me Lady, or Addy." Sirius grinned.

"If you want, I can start calling you Lady," he said, and she laughed, but shook her head.

"It's okay; I like it when you call me Adelaide." He smiled reassuringly and took her back into his arms.

They were only there for ten minutes when the projection that showed his heartbeat (what Healers used instead of Heart Monitors) suddenly flat lined, and Jeans chest stopped moving. Adelaide took in a shaky breath, before burying her head into Sirius' shoulder and crying.

The funeral was small, and held two days later. Adelaide, true to her word, hadn't invited her friends and waited to tell them when they boarded the train. She didn't give an Eulogy, and they were the only two beside Nurse Witte that watched as her father was buried. There was no music, and they watched in silence as he was buried beside Maddie, his gravestone engraved with the image of his house.

The rest of the week was spent away from the house. Adelaide couldn't stay and instead packed a lot of her things, most things she would never use, and they rented a room in the Leaky Cauldron, spending their time in Diagon Alley while they received owl after owl from Lily, James, and Remus complaining about why they weren't invited, Lily the most upset then the other two.

The twentieth came quickly, and when they found James and Lily in a compartment Lily began to berate Adelaide, before bursting into tears and hugging her tightly, murmuring how sorry she was. James and Sirius were quickly kept to one side of the train while the girls talked quickly, Lily arguing her point more then once. Finally, Adelaide sighed.

"Look, I just want to have a relaxing stay at Hogwarts, and avoid the topic of my father," she said in a voice that screamed no exceptions, "Please. I got over it; I've been prepared for six years now, and it wasn't sudden. It's okay." She smiled, and Lily finally quieted herself, moving the topic along to N.E.W.T.s.

And Adelaide really believed her words; it was going to be okay, and they would be fine. She shared a smile with Sirius and as they left the train, she held his hand tightly as they made their way to the carriages.

"I can see the Thestral's," Adelaide whispered softly, her grip tightening. Sirius nodded.

"I can too," he murmured. The Thestral looked over at them with its odd milky eyes, and Adelaide felt her heartbeat stop in her chest.

For a moment, she thought she had seen her Dad, Mum and Maddie watching her, smiling and waving to her as she boarded the carriage.

-

**Disclaimer: **Harry Potter and all things concerning belong to J.K. Rowling. I own Adelaide Vicknair, Vanessa Wolfe, Caryn Gree, Elise Barnes, Madeline Vicknair, Annalisa Bertucci, Professor Sicily and Jean Vicknair.

**A/N:** I didn't want to make as big of a deal about Jean dieing, because they knew it would be very soon, and frankly I was tired of death (or funerals, at least) and I don't think I could have done it. The ending is rushed, because I didn't want to talk about death any more. But the thing is, as it stands right now the sequel would be 40 chapters or so, twice as long as this story. Tell me if you think I should either A) cut the sequel into two parts or B) combine the sequel with this. I think I'd rather post it as a sequel, but w/e you guys want.

BUT DUDE! MJ DIED! That means you can't joke about him, cuz otherwise it'll be very distasteful. Srsly. I'll yell at you and call u a heartless monster if you do.

Yours truly,  
B.E.N.


	17. Nastily Exhausting Wizarding Exams

**Wallflower**

**Chapter Seventeen: **Nastily Exhausting Wizarding Exams

If there was one day that made the fifth and seventh years become sweating messes, it was June 13, otherwise known a the beginning of N.E.W.T.s and O.W.L.s. Even the students who really didn't care about their grades were feeling the pressure and actually making an attempt at passing. So, it was a living hell for those who actually cared about what they got.

"I'm going to fail," Adelaide said suddenly, breathing heavily, "There is no way I'm passing this thing."

"Oh, you'll do fine," Lily encouraged as they made there was downstairs where their Transfiguration Exams were taking place, "You're one of the smartest students in the school."

"You're a filthy liar," Adelaide accused, "don't lie to me like that; it isn't very ladylike." Lily snorted, and shook her head.

"Look, you've been getting hundreds on almost all of your quizzes and tests; you have an abnormally large brain capacity!"

"Stop trying to make me feel better," Adelaide murmured dejectedly. They entered the Great Hall, and all signs of conversation stopped as they took their seats, Adelaide gnawing on her lip the whole time. She listened closely to the instructor, before she was given her test. With shaking hands, she flipped it over.

'_What are the five principle exceptions from Gamp's Law of Elemental Transfiguration?'_

She let out a sigh of relief and quickly scribbled down her answer with a smile; why had she been worried again?

It was a grueling two hours later that they finished their exam, and then they had a break, where Adelaide and Sirius took the chance to go down into the Kitchens. Lobby was more than willing to supply them with an excess amount of food, and Adelaide sighed in ecstasy as she took a bite of a chocolate filled pastry.

"This is so good," she moaned, causing Sirius to laugh.

"I thought you didn't have a sweet tooth?" he said with a grin. She shrugged.

"Only when I get a craving for chocolate do I have a sweet tooth," she corrected, "and that is some damn good chocolate." Sirius laughed and pushed his food around on his plate.

"What N.E.W.T. do we have next?" he asked before taking a bite of food. Adelaide swallowed, and thought for a second.

"I think Charms," she said.

It seemed their break was over much too soon, and they had to make their way back to the Great Hall, this time for the Charms N.E.W.T.s. Adelaide was considerably calmer then before, and finished the test relatively quickly with a satisfied smile.

'_If all N.E.W.T.s are like this then I'm going to pass with flying colors,' _Adelaide mused as she toyed with the ends of her quill.

And then, after another two hours of listening to the scratching of quills across parchment, they were released. Adelaide practically jumped with joy as she skipped out of the Hall, before waiting outside for her friends.

The next day passed almost exactly the same with their Potions N.E.W.T.s in the morning and their Herbology N.E.W.T.s in the afternoon, and the next day was the same, for the most part. They completed their Defense Against the Dark Arts N.E.W.T.s in the morning and had the whole afternoon off.

"I don't think we should tell them," Peter protested to James and Sirius as they sat in the common room, Lily and Adelaide currently resting in the girls dormitory.

"Why not?" James pushed, "They won't tell anyone and they have our full trust." Peter shrugged.

"This is just our thing," he explained, "if we go and tell them about our little escapades then they'll want to come too, and you know how dangerous that can be! We'll loose one of the only things that only the Marauders have to themselves."

"They aren't stupid, Wormtail," James said, "they know how dangerous werewolves are, and they won't be stupid enough to want to join in. Besides, they know that this is our thing and they wouldn't intrude like that. You're just over thinking things." Peter sighed, before standing.

"You three can go ahead and tell them," he retorted, "but I won't be there."

He left without a backward glance and headed upstairs. Remus, who had remained silent for the most part of the conversation, sighed and massaged his temples, "This thing between Peter and Adelaide has really blown up out of proportions," he murmured, "I feel like I'm their father sometimes, trying to get them to play nice." James and Sirius laughed.

"Yeah; but it's mostly Peter making a big fuss about it," Sirius said, "Adelaide just sits by patiently and waits everything out." James shrugged.

"I'm going to refrain from commenting," he responded, "but how about we all get together in the R.O.R. and we tell them there, while we're surrounded by all sorts of chocolates to take their minds off of it if they get mad?" Remus laughed dryly, and Sirius shook his head.

"I don't think that'll work with Adelaide unless she has a sudden chocolate craving," he commented with a grin. Then, Adelaide and Lily came down the stairs, grinning, and took their seats in front of the guys.

"Do you know about the Room of Requirement?" James asked, getting straight to the point. While Adelaide shook her head, Lily nodded. Sirius grinned.

"Goody Two Shoes," he joked, and she blushed.

"Well, we were planning on going there today," Remus stepped in, "To relax from N.E.W.T.s."

"Sure," Adelaide agreed with a shrug, "Is Peter coming too?" It was honest curiosity. Sirius shook his head.

"He doesn't wanna go, we already asked," James answered, before grinning, "We'll leave in an hour.

The hour passed with a surprising amount of speed as they sat in the common room joking about some of the N.E.W.T. questions, or on more then one occasion joking about each other and how they looked during the exams.

Soon, they were sitting in the middle of the Room of Requirement, surrounded by chocolates (as James proposed) and reclining in the giant bean bag chairs that were arranged in a circle in the middle of the room. Time flew by quickly and suddenly, it was nine o' clock. Remus glanced over at Sirius and James, who were surrounded in candy wrappers, before speaking.

"We have something to tell you," he said bluntly, catching everyone's attention. Adelaide tilted her head in curiosity. Sirius sighed and straightened up, while James remained lounging in his chair, but he was watching the girls, waiting for a reaction.

"What is it?" Lily asked.

"Well," Remus said slowly, "…how would you react if I told you I was a werewolf?"

"I'd ask how it happened," Adelaide said immediately, while Lily looked slightly confused.

"Wait…are you saying you're a werewolf?" she asked in confusion. Remus nodded. Lily's jaw dropped open, and she tried to wrap her head around it. "But…but you're so nice…you don't seem like you would be a werewolf!" Remus grinned wryly.

"When I was little, my dad insulted Fenrir Greyback, and for revenge he infected me with Lycanthropy," Remus explained. Adelaide nodded slowly, before picking up another piece of candy and popping it into her mouth.

"You're rather calm about this," Sirius commented. Adelaide smiled wryly.

"Well, first off in St. Mungo's Maddie was friends with a little girl that was a werewolf, and she kept talking about her for weeks until the little girl passed away. So I know that being a werewolf doesn't mean you're a bad person; just different. Plus, I'm still in shock," she laughed before glancing at the others, "I get the feeling that that's not the only thing you want to tell us." She raised an eyebrow, and James stepped in.

"Well, after we – meaning Sirius, Peter, and I – found out that Remus was a werewolf, we decided that we didn't want him to be all by himself during the full moon, so…" James shrugged, "We became Animagi."

"Wait, wait, wait!" Lily intervened, "You're all animagi? Do you know how difficult that is? When did this happen?" James shrugged.

"Well, we found out about Remus in second year, and came up with the idea a bit later on. We successfully became Animagi in fourth year," he explained. Lily looked as if she had a sudden epiphany while Adelaide kept munching on her chocolates.

"You're being oddly quiet," Sirius observed. She shrugged again.

"Well, it's not to terribly surprising," she said with a shrug, "You're all remarkable at Transfiguration, so really it all makes sense." Lily looked between everyone, before sighing and falling back.

"I need chocolate," she demanded, and Adelaide laughed before giving in to her needs and dumping a handful of chocolate onto her face. Lily popped up, before glaring and tossing a piece at her head. Adelaide ducked with a laugh. Lily grabbed another handful of chocolate and tossed it at Adelaide, who screamed and guarded her face with her arms.

"What!? I gave you chocolate!" Adelaide said, giggling. Lily play glared at her, before standing and picking up more chocolate. Adelaide's eyes widened and she leapt up, before she was being chased around the room and ducking as Lily pelted chocolates at her back. Remus sighed.

"I have no idea how they took that so easily," he said, laughing dryly, "You guys really do go well together." Sirius grinned, before picking up a piece of chocolate.

"You know, I think we should take a page from their book," he mused, before twisting and tossing a chocolate at Lily's head. She yelped, and glared at Sirius, and soon chocolate was flying all across the room.

"This means war!" Lily yelled, and she tossed more chocolate towards Sirius, while James began to pelt Adelaide with sweets.

After an hour, they were all lying in the middle of the room, bean bag chairs forgotten, and breathing heavily; even Remus had joined in on the fun, though he helped the girls out seeing as how they had James and Sirius against them and they happened to have very good aim; but what could you expect from Quidditch players?

"You know, you were supposed to be in the common room thirty minutes ago," Lily said, looking at the ceiling, "And James and I should be doing our rounds." Sirius sighed.

"Party Poopers," he murmured, before pushing himself up with a sigh, "You guys could always escort us to the common room." He looked over at James, who snorted.

"Why should we do that?" he asked.

"Because we're your friends?" Remus offered. James sighed dramatically.

"All right, we'll head back now," he said, "…when I feel like getting up." They laughed loudly, and Adelaide was (At this point) clutching her stomach in pain.

"I ate too much chocolate," she complained, "I'm going to have a chocolate hangover in the morning."

They all managed to make their way into the common room without being spotted, and while James and Lily made their way to their rounds, the other three went to sleep after sharing tired 'good nights'. When they woke up, they groaned as they remembered that they had another N.E.W.T. today, and were relieved when they remembered that it was the last test they had to take, and that soon they would be able to sleep in all they want.

Adelaide once again zoomed through her exam, though she wasn't as sure about this exam as the others; she wasn't really a plant person, unfortunately, but she hoped she at least made an E. Like the previous day they went to the kitchens and Lobby began crying when he realized that Adelaide was going to leave this year. It was awkward, but she managed to sooth him with a promise that she wouldn't forget him.

Sirius couldn't stop laughing when they left the kitchens.

To their surprise, though, when they reached the common room there was a party in full swing. The seventh years had taken over, kicking everyone else out, invited the Ravenclaws and Hufflepuffs over, and were throwing a party.

"Wow," Adelaide said breathlessly, "I don't think this happened last year." Sirius just nodded in agreement. He grinned, and glanced over at her.

"You wanna join in or take advantage of the empty dormitory?" he asked.

"Empty dormitory, definitely," she agreed, "I'm not a big party person."

So, they quickly made their way threw the crowds and managed to get up the stairs and into the dormitory without a scratch. As predicted, the dormitory was empty, and you couldn't hear the loud noise from downstairs; obviously they'd put a sound barrier up as to not draw the Professors attention. Adelaide was smiling as she bounded over to the bed and took a seat on the edge, and fell backwards with her arm stretched above her head.

"It's so quiet," she said with a sigh, kicking off her shoes, "much better then downstairs." Sirius hummed in response and stood at her head, looking down at her in amusement.

"You're like a cat," he commented, and she smiled.

"I'm more of a dog person," she said with a shrug. Sirius smiled, and she sighed in bliss, her eyes drifting closed. He watched her as she relaxed against his bed with a small smile on her face. Slowly, he leaned down and gently kissed her, causing her to jerk in surprise, and her eyes to snap open, only to flutter close again. He tugged on her bottom lip, and her hands gently cupped the sides of his face and she arched upwards. She giggled.

"This is so weird," she murmured, before she turned, somehow keeping their lips attached, and rose onto her knees. She pressed against him and threaded her fingers through his hair as tingles went down her spine. He wrapped an arm around her waist while his other hand cupped the back of her head. They pulled away and she watched him with burning eyes, before slowly pulling away from his arms and falling back onto his bed, this time laying like you were supposed to. Sirius followed her lead and lay down beside her, crossing his arms over his chest. She pressed close to his side and sighed as she closed her eyes.

"How long have we known each other?" she asked softly, and Sirius quickly counted in his head.

"Ten months," he answered. She hummed in acknowledgement, and pressed closer.

"Is it too soon for me to tell you that I love you?" she whispered. He glanced over at her, and shook his head.

"Nah, I think it's the perfect time." She smiled and moved away from him slightly.

"I love you," He looked over at her, and uncrossed his arms and pushed himself up, before he turned and planted his hands on either side of her face and his lips brushed against hers.

"I love you," he murmured, before kissing her lightly, "I love you," he pressed his lips against her and fire seemed to erupt between them wherever they touched. She pressed her hands against his chest and their lips moved together. Adelaide gasped as his hand trailed down her chest and to the hem of her skirt, and his fingers gently toyed with her skin causing goose pimples to rush over her arms.

"S-Sirius," she whispered and his kisses slowed, and moved down to her neck, before he pulled away and watched her as she breathed through her mouth and kept her eyes closed.

"You're tired," he murmured, and she shook her head as she watched him through hooded eyes.

"No," she responded, "I want to keep kissing you." He laughed when she yawned, and she pouted as he rolled off of her, only to squeak as he pulled her against his chest, his arms wrapped tightly around her.

"I love you," he whispered into her ear, and she smiled.

"I love you too," she sighed, snuggling closer to him before she fell into a peaceful sleep. He watched her for a moment, before he followed her example and buried his nose into her neck and dozed off.

-

"I'm nervous," Adelaide said as she twisted her hands in front of her, dressed in a long black robe. Lily gently placed a hand on her shoulder and smiled in a reassuring manner.

"Don't be," she responded, "You got all O's on your N.E.W.T.s; you just need to go up there, grab your diploma, and walk off."

"I'm going to trip, I know it," Adelaide groaned, burying her face into her palms, "Kill me now, please." Lily smiled apologetically and patted her shoulder again. Adelaide continued, "It doesn't help that I'm in the very last round; I hate my last name."

"It is quite odd, isn't it?"

Adelaide turned with a frown as she faced Sirius, who smirked before hugging her, "Come on, I'm just kidding." She glared at him, and he smiled sheepishly.

"What do you expect? Adelaide Vicknair doesn't really flow."

"And Sirius Black does?" she retorted with a raised eyebrow. He grinned.

"Actually, yes it does." Lily frowned apologetically,

"He's right, it really does," she said, and Adelaide frowned, crossing her arms over her chest, but couldn't keep a smile down for long. McGonagall then quickly walked by and ordered people into the line (Adelaide really wishing her last name started with B) and then she mounted the stage, with Parents looking on, and younger siblings attempting to entertain there selves for what they knew would be a very long ordeal.

The first person called was a boy named Evan Abercrombie, and there weren't many people who had a last name starting with 'A'. Adelaide was only half interested as Annalisa Bertucci was called, and she clapped when Sirius was called up moments later. She tuned out the rest of the 'B', 'C' and 'D's and Lily was the last 'E' to be called up, with James whistling with a wink. Caryn (to no one's surprise) got her diploma, but looked as if she had had a rough night. When Remus went up he was smiling politely, and Adelaide whistled for him, sending him a playful wink. James made a big show about getting his diploma and actually bowed off stage, to several Slytherin's annoyance. Adelaide clapped politely for Peter, but inside she was starting to get nervous.

"Vicknair, Adelaide,"

She let out a breath of air and quickly made her way across the stage, blushing as she received more then one cat-call. She smiled at McGonagall, before quickly rushing off stage and standing beside Sirius.

"That was a nightmare," she whispered, and Sirius laughed but quickly grabbed her hand, running his thumb over the back soothingly.

Then came the part that they were waiting for: James and Lily's speech as Head Boy and Head Girl.

"Well, this is the last year for the Marauders," James said with a grin, "And We've all matured a lot, whether you'd like to believe it or not; but we aren't the only things to have changed. A lot of people realized who they are and who they can trust, found people they would give their lives for, and have already begun planning their future with someone else.

"These past seven years have been wonderful; the best experiences of my life. I've learned so many things, not just about school but about people, and I've met people I consider my family in every way but blood. I've changed a lot in just a year, and for the better," He surreptitiously glanced at his friend, "But one thing you all know is how I like to go out with a bang." People stiffened and expected a prank, but instead, James suddenly kneeled in front of a wide eyed Lily and held out a small velvet box.

"One of the reasons Seventh Year was the best was because you gave me a chance, and made me the happiest person in the world. I've had eyes only for you the longest time, and you finally looked back. That's why I'm taking this chance to let all of Hogwarts know that I love you; Lily Evans, will you marry me?"

In a flurry of tears, Lily flung herself into his arms and kissed him passionately, causing catcalls to reverberate from the crowd. She pulled away and nodded happily, and James smiled before slipping a pretty, white-gold band onto her finger. Adelaide smiled.

"They're good together," she murmured, resting her head on his shoulder, "They deserve to be happy." He gently kissed her forehead and wrapped his arm around her shoulders.

"They're not the only ones," he responded softly as he continued to watch the spectacle on stage as Lily tried to gather herself enough to make her own speech, but it seemed as if she was smiling to hard to do anything other then snog James. Sirius' lips turned up in a smile and he gave his friend a thumbs up, which was returned with a wink. He returned his attention back to Adelaide.

"One day," he whispered softly, causing her to blush, "I'll make you as happy as Lily. I promise."

-

**Disclaimer: **Harry Potter and all things concerning belong to J.K. Rowling. I own Adelaide Vicknair, Vanessa Wolfe, Caryn Gree, Elise Barnes, Madeline Vicknair, Annalisa Bertucci, Professor Sicily and Jean Vicknair.

**A/N:**YAY!!!! THEY SAIT IT THEY SAID IT THEY SAID IT!!!!!!!! THEY SAID IIIIIIIIIIT!!!! I'm so proud of them. ::smile:: Originally the Graduation would have its own chapter, but I had serious writers block. Really badly. Don't fret, I'm still writing as much as I can, but it's getting more difficult now that they're out of Hogwarts. But be prepared for fluffyness. MUAHAHA! And I think I got all of my 'setting' and 'sitting' errors this time.

Yours truly,  
B.E.N.


	18. The Final Stop

**Wallflower**

**Chapter Eighteen: **The Final Stop

Adelaide awoke around five in the morning, and everyone else was still asleep in their beds. She sighed, knowing that she wouldn't be able to get back to sleep, and rolled out of her bed before going and taking a seat on the window sill. She pressed her forehead against the cool glass and watched as the sun rose above the horizon, her breath fogging up the glass.

"I can't believe it,"

Adelaide turned and saw Lily awake, staring at the ceiling with wide eyes. Adelaide smiled and walked over before sitting down on the edge of her bed.

"Can't believe what?" she asked, "That you're engaged?" Lily smiled and shook her head.

"It completely took me by surprise," she said truthfully, "I never thought that I would leave Hogwarts engaged to James Potter." She looked over at Adelaide, "Do you think we're moving to soon?" Adelaide shook her head.

"You've been dating for almost a whole year," she reasoned, "And he's adored you for almost six years. You both love each other, and you make a wonderful couple." She smirked, "Besides, Lily Potter has a nice ring to it." Lily blushed, but she got a dreamy look on her face. Then, she jumped up.

"Do you know what this means!?" she asked with a large smile. Adelaide blinked but shook her head. Lily's smile widened, "You're paying for my wedding!" Adelaide laughed, and shook her head.

"I think that may be the only reason you agreed to marry him," Adelaide joked, but she smiled, "Of course I'll pay for your wedding; that's why I said that. I was hoping you two would get together from the beginning." Lily sighed.

"Of course you were," she murmured, but she yawned before getting out of bed, "Well, we better start getting our things together for the train ride." Adelaide let out a breath.

"This is the last time we're boarding the Hogwarts Express," she whispered, "this is so…weird."

Her mind ran through the year and she felt as if she had accomplished something major. She had passed all her N.E.W.T.s with straight O's, she had gotten an amazing boyfriend, and found some of the best friends of her life. She smiled, before she began to finish packing her things.

In the boys dormitory, Sirius was still passed out and snoring slightly. He had put all his things into his trunk the night before (to everyone's surprise) just so he could sleep in the next morning. He was fully planning on sleeping in, if it weren't for James and his incessant chatter in his ear in an attempt to wake him up.

"Wake up, Sirius!" He hassled, "I'm bored, and you can help me pack."

"Bugger off," Sirius murmured into his pillow. James just tore off his covers and wadded them up in a ball; it didn't faze Sirius in the least. He continued to lie on his bed with his face buried in his pillow. Then James began to throw shoes at him. With a groan Sirius turned his head to glare at him, "Just because you decided to procrastinate and not pack you bags doesn't mean I have to get up early."

"You're the only one who got your stuff together last night," Remus said as he put away his last book and shut his trunk and locked it, "I think Adelaide's been rubbing off on you."

"You didn't even want to do a prank to see us off," Peter said as he searched under his bed, "and you went to sleep early last night. You shouldn't be tired anyway."

"I couldn't sleep," Sirius murmured, "what time is it anyway?"

"Seven thirty," Remus said as he took a seat on his bed, "Train leaves in an hour." Sirius groaned, but pushed himself up and headed into the bathroom where he used the restroom and brushed his teeth. When he came out, James was trying to pull Peter out from under the bed.

"What happened?" he asked Remus casually, amused.

"The bed collapsed on top of him," he explained, "And the beds are heavy. Should we help them?" Sirius paused, before sighing.

"I guess," he murmured, walking over and lifting the bed a bit, causing James to pull Peter from under the frame. Sirius let it drop with a loud 'thunk' and grinned at his friends, "Good thing you woke me up, huh?" he said, before grabbing his clothes and walking back into the bathroom, "I'm taking a shower."

-

The train whistle blew as they Express left Hogsmeade station, smoke billowing out behind them. They watched the village fade away with heavy hearts, and Adelaide sighed heavily.

"I can't believe it," she murmured, propping her head up on her hand, "We're actually leaving."

"We've said that a lot recently," Sirius mused from beside her, "It's making it rather easy to believe." Adelaide laughed before leaning back in her seat and closing her eyes, her heart thudding in her chest and tears coming to her eyes.

"I'm gonna miss it," she murmured, "It's likely I'll never see Hogwarts again; do you know how depressing that is?" she turned and looked at them, and Lily seemed to be the only other who was close to tears. Sirius just nodded before entwining their fingers. He opened his mouth to speak when there was a knock on the compartment and it slid open, to reveal Annalisa, who looked pale and close to tears, though she hid it well.

"Can I see Peter for a moment?" she asked softly. Peter stood quickly, worried, and glanced back at his friends.

"I'll be back in a minute," he said, before following her out, the door closing softly behind him. The others stared at the door for a moment with wide eyes.

"…was Bertucci crying?" James asked after a second, "and what did she want with Wormtail?"

"I guess that's why we saw her with him that one time at Hogsmeade," Adelaide murmured, "But isn't she seeing someone else?" Lily looked at her with a raised eyebrow.

"This is Annalisa Bertucci we're talking about," she said slowly, "She's been with about every single Slytherin guy at least once, and she's even been seen with a girl every now and then." Adelaide furrowed her eyebrows and tilted her head slightly.

"She doesn't seem like she would do that," she said, "I've talked to her once, and she seemed pretty hung up on Mulciber."

"Bertucci isn't the type to get attached to anyone," Remus said with a frown, "I hope Peter knows what he's doing."

"I heard that she was a death eater," Lily said with a frown, "she hangs out with Avery, Mulciber, and Snape almost all the time."

"Peter will be fine," Adelaide said, shaking her head. The others looked at her in surprise, and she sighed, "I may not be too fond of him, but he thinks of you all as brothers. He's not an idiot."

"We never said he was," James intoned, "but he's not always very observant." Adelaide shrugged, and propped her feet up on the open space across from her before leaning into Sirius with a sigh.

Annalisa turned to Peter as soon as they were three compartments away from the others, and her eyes were cold. Peter decided against commenting on the fact that she looked terrible, and it seemed to be a wise move.

"Look, we can't be seen together ever again," she said quickly, "I don't like you, I'm a liar and I never found you attractive. I was just doing my job." Peter blinked, but sighed; he knew something was up. Annalisa could get any guy she wanted, and her genuinely interested in him? He almost laughed at the thought. It didn't stop him from being hurt, though.

"So why did you pull me out?" he asked.

"Because: we made a deal, and you're going to fulfill it," she said stoically, crossing her arms and glaring down at him, "I have some friends who came to graduation and decided on taking the train back today; you need to inform them of everything you know about the Marauders plans now that they're out of Hogwarts." Peter's eyes narrowed.

"You said you would leave Remus and James out of it," he demanded, and she tutted, shaking her head as a sadistic smile spread across her face.

"I'm a Slytherin, Peter!" she stated, "Since when am I truthful? But listen clearly when I say this: James and Remus are only using you." Peter snorted.

"Like you did?" he asked, and she sighed before leaning against the wall.

"No; why would they want to snog you?" she asked, looking him over for added effect, "Listen, and listen good: they don't trust you like they do each other. You've always been the one who lagged behind. You're relationship with them is hanging on by bare threads because of how you treated, and continue to treat, Vicknair. Sirius thinks you're an idiot who can't do anything right, James thinks you're good for nothing but pulling pranks, and Remus simply pities you. They only keep you around because you know everything about them, and they are smart enough to know that if you leave them then all their dirty little secretes will get out."

Peter was silent, and she smirked in success. "Now, you're going to come with me, go to my compartment, and do as you're told." She laughed bitterly, and grabbed his left arm, yanking down the sleeve, "Remember that you belong to us now. You can't turn your back on us, or we'll kill you."

-

"Peter's been gone a while," James murmured as he stuck his head out of the compartment, "Think Annalisa's killed him?" Adelaide snorted.

"You're being overly dramatic," she said with a dismissive wave of her hand, "Peter's not helpless." James shrugged and slid the door close before taking a seat.

"What are your animagus forms?" Lily asked suddenly, glancing once at everyone, "We never got around to it because Adelaide," she shot her a glare, "decided to start a chocolate war." Adelaide smiled and shrugged.

"Well, I'm a stag," James said, "Peter's a rat, and Sirius is a big black dog."

"That explains your ridiculous nicknames," Adelaide said, "Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot, and Prongs."

"They're not ridiculous," Sirius huffed, and Adelaide laughed at him. She opened her mouth to comment, when the door slid open and Peter walked in, taking his seat silently as if nothing had happened.

"What did Bertucci want?" Remus asked, and Peter shrugged.

"She dumped me," he responded, and silence filled the room.

"You two were dating?" Sirius asked incredulously, "Since when?"

"Christmas," he said vaguely, "She left me for Mulciber." James and Sirius wrinkled their noses.

"Austin Mulciber?" James asked, "That Slytherin slime ball?" Adelaide kept her gaze glued outside, but really she couldn't blame Annalisa. Mulciber may have had a terrible attitude eighty percent of the time, but he was attractive and not to mention taller then her, pretty much the opposite of Peter. She quickly chastised herself, though, knowing that she shouldn't be so mean to him (even if she did hold quite a bit of animosity towards him).

The ride was peaceful for the most part and they all managed to get along and not tear each others heads off (you never knew when Peter and Adelaide would get in another fight; it hadn't happened yet, but you never know). They each got some candies from the trolley (Adelaide sticking with Pumpkin Pastries) and before they knew it the train was pulling into the station. They quickly grabbed their luggage and got off the train.

"This is so weird," James said for what felt like the fiftieth time, "it feels the same as always, but it's different, you know?"

They all stuck together as their parents came and got them, Peter leaving first with his mother, followed by Lily and her parents, her Sister absent as usual, and then James left with his father. Adelaide glanced over at Sirius as Remus waved his goodbyes, walking off the platform with his sickly looking father.

"I don't want to go home," she said suddenly, "I can't stand it there, I don't want to be alone in such a big space." Sirius wrapped his arm around her shoulder in a comforting manner.

"You can stay with me," he said with a grin, "I've got plenty of room." She looked at him with a raised eyebrow.

"Are you sure?" she asked, "I don't want to be a burden." Sirius laughed.

"You're not a burden," he reassured, "If anything, with the way you cook you'll be a blessing." She blushed, and shook her head.

"Thanks," she murmured. She grabbed his hand with a smile, and began tugging him to the exit, "Let's go!" Sirius laughed.

"I have no idea what got you so happy all the sudden," he murmured, and she just laughed as they walked through the barrier. They moved quickly through the station, before she turned to him with a curious expression, and she crossed her arms over her chest. Sirius stopped, and watched her in confusion, "what?"

Her expression turned serious and determined.

"I want you to teach me how to be an animagus."

-

**Disclaimer: **Harry Potter and all things concerning belong to J.K. Rowling. I own Adelaide Vicknair, Vanessa Wolfe, Caryn Gree, Elise Barnes, Madeline Vicknair, Annalisa Bertucci, Professor Sicily and Jean Vicknair.

**A/N:** I'm really tempted to write a story about Annalisa. Really, really tempted. But I know, for a FACT, that her story would be rated M and very depressing. But I think I'll write it. After, you know, I finish this and get at least halfway through the sequel. O_O And Austin's a sexy name.

And I hate this chapter. The best part of it is with Annalisa. I just…blech. And I wanted Adelaide to be an animagus for later chapters, but I didn't want it to be cliche, so I went about it in a way I've not seen yet.

Anyway, I want you to know that the sequel will be posted after I get ahead so I can continue updating so quickly. So most likely after this story finishes, there will be a week or two wait before I post the sequel, and then i'll have to decide if I want to split it into two stories or not. There will be fluff next chapter, so yay!!

Yours truly,  
B.E.N.


	19. Red Dress

**Wallflower**

**Chapter Nineteen: **Red Dress

"Why do you want to be an animagus?" Sirius asked warily, before he began walking again into a shaded area, where the muggles just walked past without a second glance. She followed him without question and leaned against the wall beside him.

"Well, I told you how I'd like to be a healer, right?" she asked, and he nodded, "Well, I want to work in the children's ward, and since they don't normally allow animals inside, I thought it would be nice if I could change into an animal for the kids sake." She looked at him hopefully, "Please?" Sirius sighed, before nodding.

"but I retain the right to stop teaching you if I think something might go wrong," he added quickly, and she smiled.

"Of course," she agreed, before she smiled slyly at him, "Though I'm wondering when you became a rule abider." Sirius laughed and held out his arm.

"Come on, I'll apparate you back to my place," he said, and she smiled and grasped his arm firmly. He quickly turned on the spot, and Adelaide sucked in a breath at the uncomfortable tube-like feeling. She sighed in relief as the feeling vanished, and she took in the house.

It was two stories tall, and was very gothic looking as to be expected from a Black, but it wasn't foreboding. It appeared to be well cared for and it was the only house nearby, and Adelaide assumed it was for privacy issues. It didn't have the generic shape of a house, and looked like an upper case L flipped upside down. It had dark paneling and black shingles, some of which looked as if they had seen better days. She smiled, and glanced over at Sirius with a raised eyebrow.

"Are we going to sleep outside, then?" she asked, waving her wand and levitating their bags now that they were free from prying eyes. He laughed, before nodding his head to the house.

"Let's go," he said, and they quickly made their way to the front door which had silver serpent knockers with gleaming emerald eyes. Sirius quickly pushed the door open, and Adelaide felt her breath leave her in a short gasp.

They had entered in the living room, and the ceiling stretched up and caused her to feel very small and insignificant. The ceiling sloped down from the middle before suddenly dropping off as it neared the kitchen. The walls were painted a very dark burgundy that reminded her of wine and matched the dark cherry wood floors perfectly. To her right was a dark stone fireplace with a orange fire already crackling and spreading warmth through the room. There was a small coffee table parallel to the hearth with a dark mahogany frame and a glass top. Parallel to that was a black leather couch, and perpendicular to the coffee table was a matching black leather recliner, it's back facing the door.

"Wow," she whispered, before moving foreword to the kitchen, where the ceiling returned to the standard height. The Kitchen wasn't as long as the living room and stretched from side to side. It had light toffee colored walls and the same cherry flooring. There were counters along the left wall, and just inside the entry way was a large mahogany table with matching chairs. At the far end of the room was a glass door which led to a large and well kept back yard. To the right of the table was a dark colored door, and beside that was a stairwell that led to the second floor.

"You're house is so beautiful," Adelaide whispered, and Sirius shrugged.

"It's not that much," he said, "Your house is much bigger." She tilted her head to the side as she continued to take in every minute detail.

"True, but that means there is more empty space, making you feel like you're all alone in the house," she explained, "but here it just feels so homey, and warm!" she turned around and smiled, her hands clasped behind her back, "It may not be as big as my house, but your rooms match better then mine did, and it's just…breathtaking!" She smiled, before turning back around and pointing at the door in the kitchen, "where does that lead?"

"To the only downstairs bedroom," he explained, "It's not in the best condition and there's dust everywhere. I've been meaning to clean it up, but…" he trailed off and she just nodded.

"Am I going to stay in an upstairs bedroom then?" she asked, "assuming that's what's up there." Sirius nodded and they both began their walk up the stairs, the walls now painted a soft beige and the steps were a golden color, and Adelaide kept a firm grip on the handrail.

"There's three upstairs bedrooms and two bathrooms," he explained, "and the house's layout is a bit odd, so be warned."

They reached the top of the stairs and Adelaide understood what he meant. To her left was another dark door that stood out against the pale beige walls, and to her right was a square area jutting out from the corner, with a small hallway in between the walls corner and the stairwell, which was hidden by a half-wall. She squeezed through the gap, and there was a large space between that room and another square room, and there was a desk against the far wall with a vase and flowers on the right.

"Those are the bathrooms," Sirius said as he joined her in the cut out, and he pointed to the rooms on either side of the desk, "and further back is another opening which leads to the final two bedrooms." He nodded his head foreword and they had to make their way through another small hallway, Adelaide having the foresight to leave the luggage at the top of the stairs. The walls were still painted beige, and the floor was the same golden wood as the stairwell. Right in front of her was a pristine white door, and to her right was an equally white door.

"I'm going to guess and say that the dark door over there is yours?" she asked, motioning vaguely behind her. Sirius smiled and laughed.

"Yeah, that's my room. You're welcome in there whenever you want," he explained, "which room do you want?"

"Do I get to look at them first?" she asked. He blushed and shrugged, and she slipped in and glanced at the room directly in front of her. She grimaced. It had light pink walls and fluffy white carpeting. The bed (located to her right and centered against the far wall) had a white comforter with pink, yellow, and baby blue floral designs and a white wicker headboard to match the white wicker dresser (located in the center of the wall directly in front of her) and the white armoire (located in the center of the far wall to her left, directly across from the bed). The room was rather long, and very odd.

"Ew," she said simply, and she heard Sirius laugh behind her.

"I had a feeling you wouldn't like that one," he said with a grin, "I don't really know why Uncle Alphard had that room; I didn't bother asking, though." Adeladie closed the door before moving to the other room and poking her head in.

This was much nicer, in Adelaide's opinion. It had tan walls and dark wooden flooring like downstairs. The bed was placed against the center to the wall to her right and had a black headboard and frame that went well with the dark forest green comforter and black pillows, and on the wall parallel to the door was a black dresser that matched the headboard. The room was smaller then the other pink one, but she didn't mind. There was a black armoire to the right of the bed.

"I chose this one," she said as she turned around and faced Sirius with a smile, "Even if it is very Slytheriny." Sirius laughed.

"You just made up a word," he said with a grin. She shrugged, before moving back towards the stairs and shrinking her trunk down, adding a featherweight charm and then returning to her newly claimed room. She placed it at the foot of her bed, like she did at Hogwarts, before enlarging it and removing the charm. She smiled, before walking back out of her room and to the opening and hugging Sirius, causing him to stumble.

"Thank you for everything," she murmured, "I really appreciate it." Sirius patted her back.

"No problem," he said with a shrug, "I prefer having you nearby instead of at your place anyway." She smiled and pulled away, before making their way back through the narrow all and downstairs (after Sirius tossed his trunk into his room without a second glance). Adelaide took a seat on the couch, and glanced at Sirius with a raised eyebrow.

"So…what do we do now?"

– _Three Months Later – _

Adelaide was glowing when she woke up in the morning. She stretched, popping her back, and smiled over at Sirius who was sleeping soundly beside her, his mouth hanging open and his head resting on his arm. They had both gone into his room the night before (something that turned into a routine) and relaxed while joking about James and Lily, who had both made frequent visits, though it was mostly Lily stealing Adelaide away for wedding planning, which was a little less then a month away.

His room was actually very nice, though Adelaide didn't know what she really expected it to be. It had cherry wood paneling and matching floors, with a soft red and gold carpet in the middle of the floor. The bed was large and adorned with a soft burgundy comforter and black pillows and sheets that was centered against the far wall across from the doorway. There was a bookshelf in the corner (which she teased him endlessly about) and a black leather recliner with a mahogany end table to its left.

She gently kissed his cheek, before getting out of bed and heading to the bathroom, quickly slipping out of her pajamas and running a brush through her hair. She hummed to herself as she turned on the shower, testing the water with her foot, before stepping under the warm spray.

She let out a blissful sigh and stood there for a moment, before grabbing Sirius' shampoo (she did like how his hair smelt, after all) and massaged it into her scalp with a relaxed smile. She got out of the shower twenty minutes later and grabbed a towel, before making her way to her room, where she tossed the towel aside and quickly pulled on some fresh clothes.

It was eleven when Sirius woke up to the smell of bacon and eggs wafting towards him from downstairs. He groaned, not wanting to get up, but decided after a moment that it would be in his best interest to get the food while it was hot. So, he made his way downstairs and entered the kitchen, taking a seat at the table.

"Good Morning!" Adelaide chirped happily, placing a plate in front of him with a smile, "Did you sleep okay?"

"Brilliantly," he murmured, before eating his food. She sighed slightly but kept smiling as she put food on her plate and sat across from him.

They actually worked together rather well, and Adelaide found herself relaxing into a pattern fairly quickly, though that didn't mean they never did anything new or exciting. They split any of the chores, but since Nobbie suddenly appeared on their doorstep asking if Adelaide could let him stay there they really didn't have much to do that could be considered a chore, since Adelaide loved cooking and did it every chance she got.

"We should go out tonight," Sirius said suddenly, causing Adelaide to look up from her food with a cocked eyebrow.

"Where do you want to go?" she asked, and he shrugged.

"Anywhere; we can go out to eat, go to the park, go bug James and Lily," he grinned, "I'm tired of setting around." Adelaide smiled.

"Okay, lets go out to eat, then go to the park, and we'll fit in bugging James and Lily somehow," she said, and he laughed.

"We could send them a random Howler and interrupt whatever it is they're doing," he offered. Adelaide snorted, but shook her head.

"I think that we should, just maybe, give them some alone time," she said, "I would really hate to get a random howler in the middle of the night." Sirius laughed at the images, before he finished off his food.

"There's a muggle restaurant that just opened last week," he said, "We can go there." Adelaide shrugged.

"It's only," she glanced at the clock, "eleven fifteen. We have all day." She smiled, and Sirius sighed.

"How can you be so perky?" he asked wearily, "It's unnatural." She shrugged and didn't offer an answer, sticking with finishing off her breakfast.

For some reason, with her looking foreword to night to fall, the day went by very quickly. It was finally four o'clock, and Sirius began bugging her about going to eat.

"It's a nice place," he said after she caved and began heading upstairs to her room (which main purpose was to hold her things, seeing as how she didn't normally sleep in it) and he tailed her like a lost puppy, "I hear a lot of famous muggles go there."

"I'll make sure to dress nice and muggle," she said with a roll of her eyes, "You're acting like my mother." That shut him up and they finally reached the top of the stairs. Adelaide made to turn the corner, but Sirius grabbed her wrist and twisted her around. She barely got out a 'wha!?' before he pressed her back against the wall, pinning her wrists at her waist and pressing his lips against hers. She moaned and melted into him as he took her bottom lip into his mouth and nibble gently, before he released her wrists and wrapping his arms around her waist.

"Sirius," she whispered, but she was silenced as he ran his tongue along her bottom lip and then invaded her mouth. His hands slipped down to her butt and she gasped, before moaning and weaving her fingers into his hair and tugging lightly.

Then he pulled away, leaving her breathless and aching for more. He smirked, tugged on a lock of her hair before turning around and walking into his room.

"Wear that one red dress," he said, glancing over at her with a grin, "It flattering."

The door closed behind him, and she was left staring at his door like a fish out of water, her jaw working but no sound coming out. She gently ran her thumb over her swollen bottom lip, before shaking her head and moving through the gorge and towards the cavern (as she referred to the small hallway and the later opening). She sometimes wondered it the person who built the house meant for it to resemble a gorge and cavern to give the rooms an isolated feel.

She took her time pulling on her dress, and she took his advice and wore a form fitting red dress that reached her knees with a small slit up the side. It's sleeves hung off of her shoulders and the shade complemented her hair wonderfully. She went simple with the makeup, sticking with black eyeliner, mascara, and lip gloss. She pulled on her strappy black heels, and grabbed her purse (full with muggle money that she kept for such occasions) before making her way back into the cavern, and through the gorge, down the stairs, and to the living room where Sirius stood in a red button down shirt tucked into a pair of black slacks. He grinned when he saw her.

"See you took my advice," he said cheekily, and she rolled her eyes.

"I didn't know you wanted to match," she said, raising an eyebrow, "Isn't that a bit sappy for you?" Sirius just kept grinning.

"Wouldn't be the first time," he said with a shrug, before holding his arm out to her with a smirk, "M'lday?" She smiled and gently grasped his arm, before they apparated on the spot.

-

As Sirius said, the restaurant was indeed very expensive and they fit right in with their dressy outfits. After setting in their booth and chatting for two full hours, they found themselves walking hand in hand through a deserted park with, the sun setting behind them as they wasted time, not wanting to go home just yet.

"I can't believe it," Adelaide whispered. She swung their arms slightly as she began to speak again, "They're really getting married." Sirius just smiled and laughed, knowing who she was talking about without having to ask.

"Personally, I've seen it coming since they first got together," he said and he tightened his grip and ran his thumb over her hand in a soothing manner. She shook her head with a small smile on her face.

"So have I, but it's odd that it actually happened, and so soon! We're barely out of Hogwarts, really."

"We've been out for almost three months now," he responded, grey eyes sparkling with amusement, while his black hair brushed his shoulder blades "though it does feel longer. Besides, with the war going on, people want to spend as much time together as possible." The girl looked down and moved closer to him and he unwound their hands and wrapped his arm around her shoulders, pulling him closer to him.

"I know," she whispered, "Ever since Elise's father was murdered, I've been a bit scared that I'll die before I'm married, or before I have any kids."

"Well how about we fix that?" he asked suddenly, and she looked at him with confusion.

"Sirius, wha-?"

She was cut off as Sirius suddenly kneeled in front of her, stopping in front of a beautiful fountain, and pulled a small velvet case from his pocket. He held it up before opening it, revealing a simple white-gold band with a small diamond perched carefully in the metal, with an ruby perched on either side of the diamond.

"You said so yourself," he said with a grin, "Marry me?" she stared at him, before she broke out into a wide smile and wrapped her arms around him tightly.

"Yes," she whispered, "Yes, yes, god yes!!" He laughed before pulling away and slipping the ring onto her finger.

"Adelaide Black," she whispered softly with a smile, "I think it has a ring to it, don't you?" He grinned cheekily.

"Much better then Adelaide Vicknair," She slapped his chest playfully, before grasping his face and crashing his lips onto hers.

"I love you," she murmured, before pulling away with a smile, "I love you so much, I don't know how my heart can bear it." Sirius smiled and pulled her lips back to his and wrapping an arm around her waist while cupping the back on her head with his other hand, and she sighed as she melted into him, fisting her hands in his shirt. She pulled away from him, breathless, and he grinned before they unwound and he wrapped his arm around her shoulder.

"Lets get outta here," he murmured, and with her nod of agreement, they apparated back to his house. When they were relieved of the tube-like sensation, Adelaide turned in his arms and pressed her lips against his tightly and her responded by grasping her bottom and pulling her closer to him, and she tugged his head down and ran her tongue over his lips and their tongues twisted together. They moved backward awkwardly, Sirius attempting to glance over his shoulder to find out where they were walking, before he sat down on the couch with a grunt. Adelaide quickly made sure his attention was all on her before she ran her hands down his chest, and trailed her kisses down his neck. He realized quickly that with very quick movements she had unbuttoned his shirt, and she was kissing and nipping at the exposed skin.

"Adelaide," He groaned, "you might want to stop. You said you wanted to wait." She lifted her head and glared passionately.

"Fuck waiting," she said firmly. He groaned again and his head fell back onto the couch.

"Well, I think you would rather we do this in a bed instead of on my couch," he said, though he personally didn't care either way. Without another word she leapt off of his lap and made her way upstairs. He noticed how her dress had raised up, and revealed the back of her thighs. He groaned again.

"I love that dress," he murmured, before quickly following her upstairs to his room, the door slamming behind him.

-

**Disclaimer: **Harry Potter and all things concerning belong to J.K. Rowling. I own Adelaide Vicknair, Vanessa Wolfe, Caryn Gree, Elise Barnes, Madeline Vicknair, Annalisa Bertucci, Professor Sicily and Jean Vicknair.

**A/N:** Damn, that was a lot of describing. I hope you can imagine the house perfectly now!! ((kisses)) OH EHM GEE!! Sirius proposed! And she said yes! AND THEY MADE OUT! WHOOT, WHOOT!!

For some reason I've been having a hard time getting motivated to write scenes with more people then just Sirius and Adelaide in them. I want to surround myself with happy sappy couples who actually love each other. (If your wondering about my sudden shitty mood, you can read about my reoccurring epiphany on my profile).

Haha, their acting like hormonal teenagers (but it's kind of true since they're eighteen…) and that made me want to up the rating too. I can picture it all clearly, and it makes me smile. BAHAA!

Yours truly,  
B.E.N.


	20. Acceptance

**Wallflower**

**Chapter Twenty: **Acceptance

Adelaide was glowing as hummed softly to herself on her descent into the kitchen. She was nervous, even if she didn't show it. She had been waiting for a reply from SMU for three months now, and the school year started on the tenth of October, which was only three weeks away.

She froze as she saw an unfamiliar owl perched on the windowsill. With her heart beating in her ears, she quickly walked foreword and opened the window. The owl just stuck out its leg, revealing an elegant envelope with the SMU crest on the seal. She let out a deep breath; she either made it or she didn't, there was no in between.

She took the letter from the owls leg, and the creature promptly flew off. She swallowed, before sliding her finger under the wax seal and ripping it open. She took out the parchment, and her heart froze.

She screamed.

"What is it?" Sirius murmured as he hurried down stairs with sleep still in his eyes. Adelaide jumped him, kissing him and smiling like a lunatic.

"I was accepted at St. Mungo's!" she squealed, "I'm starting classes in October!" Sirius smiled widely.

"Congratulations! I knew you would make it!" he said, and she kissed him again.

"I am going to make the best damn breakfast you've ever had," she murmured, "and then, you're going to teach me how to be an animagus." Sirius sighed.

"You still haven't given up on that?" he asked, and she shook her head with a cheerful smile.

"Seeing as how I'd like to work in the children's ward, I think it'll come in handy," she said with a cheeky smile, "Now, you go take a shower since you smell like sex, and then I want you to get together your books on Animagi! Chop, chop!" Sirius sighed and lowered her to the ground.

"You know, most people don't want to learn before going to school," he murmured grumpily. She giggled, before grabbing his hand and leading him back upstairs.

"On second thought," she said happily, "I think I want you to come up stairs with me, throw me on the bed and ravish me." Sirius was definitely awake then.

"I'd be more then happy to do that," he said, and Adelaide laughed.

"But don't think I'm going to forget about becoming an Animagus," she warned, "because my heart is set on you teaching me. I won't take no for an answer!"

_-Two Weeks Later-_

Sirius was having a really nice dream. It was just Adelaide and him, all alone on a beautiful island overlooking a waterfall, and they were having a picnic. Time didn't seem to exist as they relaxed and made love over and over again, the sun remaining in the same position in the sky no matter how much time passed. He groaned as the images began to blur and he began to feel a very real weight on top of him and very warm breath against his ear.

"Wake up," Adelaide murmured softly, her lips brushing against his ear as she smiled, "it's morning."

"I don't wanna," Sirius mumbled under his breath as he faded in and out of his dream, "I wanna sleep…need to regain my strength." Adelaide giggled and kissed his cheek.

"Then I'll make breakfast," she said, "Whaddaya want? Name it and I'll make it." Sirius mumbled unintelligibly under his breath for a moment, causing her to raise her eyebrow.

"You need to speak English if you want food," she said with a grin. Sirius groaned and cracked open an eye.

"Bacon," he said simply, before closing his eye again, "Now lemme sleep." Adelaide sighed before she sat up, straddling his waist and placing her palms against his chest.

"You need to wake up still," she demanded, "It's October Fifth, you know what that means?" Sirius sighed and cracked open his eye again.

"Is that the day where you choose to annoy me incessantly until I'm forced to punish you?" he asked, his words slurring together. She giggled, and winked.

"I'm sure I'd have no issue with what you plan to punish me with," she said as she ran her hands down his chest, "But I'm afraid that if we don't get up and eat now we're going to be late for Lily and James' wedding, and seeing as how we're both involved in said wedding, that would prove to be a very bad situation." Sirius sighed and his mind finally came back to reality, and opened his eyes to stare at her.

"I was having a very good dream, I'll have you know," he said. Adelaide raised her eyebrows and she smiled coyly.

"Oh really?" she asked, her hands slowly trailing back up his chest before she fell back on top of him and wrapped her arms around his neck, "What was that dream about?" Sirius grinned and brushed her hair behind her ear.

"Well, it involved me and you, on a very secluded island, all by our selves," he explained and a shiver went down her spine as his hand trailed down her back and rested just at the base of her spine, "We were overlooking a waterfall, and we had a picnic before we made love over and over again." Adelaide raised an eyebrow and pressed her forehead against his.

"Oh really?" she asked, "Well, I'll have to keep this little fantasy of yours in mind when we start planning our honeymoon, hmm?" Sirius nodded, before his hand slipped under the covers. She opened her mouth to protest when he flipped her over and planting his hands firmly on either side of her head.

"Sirius!" She squealed in surprise, but she was silenced as he kissed down her neck causing her to gasp in surprise, "I-I thought you were tired," she half protested as her mind began to shut down and focus on his feather light touches.

"Keyword being was," He said with a grin before moving up and kissing her. She kissed back eagerly, before pulling away slightly.

"But we have to be out of here at eleven thirty," she protested, gasping as his hand trailed down her side, "a-and it's ten o' clock now. We need to take showers, get dressed – Sirius, are you listening to me?!"

"Mmhm," he murmured as brushed his lips against her ear, "take showers, get dressed, got it."

"Then we need to get up!" she protested, but she quieted as his hand brushed over her hip and caused electricity to shoot through her. She sighed, giving in, when he suddenly pulled away with a grin. She groaned, and her head fell back onto her pillow, "so now you stop?"

"You said we had to take a shower," he said. She furrowed her eyebrows and looked at him, confused.

"Yeah, but what does," she paused as her eyes widened in realization, "Oh." Sirius rolled off of her before he got out of bed and took Adelaide into his arms, making his way to the bathroom.

"How about we kill two birds with one stone?" he asked, kicking the door shut behind them before he sat her on her feet and pressed her into the wall to kiss her again. She murmured her agreement, and with a triumphant grin he pulled her behind the curtain and turned on the shower.

"Ah!" Adelaide screamed as the water hit her back, "Sirius, its cold!" He smirked.

"That's why you're facing the water," he explained, and she hit his chest but quieted as he kissed her again and trailed his hands along her body, "I'm sure you'll forgive me in a moment."

-

"We were almost late because of you!" Adelaide whispered under her breath as they hurried through the halls of Dundas Castle in Scottland, where Lily and James had agreed on getting married. It was no where near as beautiful as Hogwarts, but it was definitely something to admire. She was walking at a surprisingly fast pace for her three inch heels, and Sirius followed her with a satisfied smirk.

"Almost," Sirius clarified, "That's what matters. We weren't." She turned on him and pointed her finger at him angrily.

"This is all your fault," she blamed, to his amusement, "I told you we had to leave at eleven thirty! I told you! But you insisted." She turned away from him quickly, her skirt flaring around her as she made her way through the halls. Sirius sighed and followed, before she stopped again and pointed to a door with a frown.

"James is getting ready in there," she said, "I'll be with Lily down the hall." She turned to leave, but Sirius grabbed her wrist and turned her back towards him.

"I'm sorry," he offered, watching as her frown disappeared and she smiled at him and gave him a soft kiss.

"I know," she replied, "Now get going before they start sending out a search party." He grinned and let go of her wrist before walking into the indicated door where, he was bombarded by James the moment the door closed behind him.

"What took you so long to get here!?" He asked, panicking, "I thought you weren't going to show up, Remus had to keep me from sending out a search party!" Sirius sighed, but kept up his smile.

"Sorry, Adelaide and I got distracted," he said truthfully, "It's my fault."

Adelaide wasn't faring any better while Lily berated her about her carelessness.

"You need to get you hair done, and get dressed, and do your makeup," she began to hyperventilate, and Adelaide firmly grasped her shoulders and forced her to look her in the eye.

"Listen, we're witches for a reason," Adelaide explained, "I will be ready in ten minutes, this I promise you. Now calm down, everything will go smoothly, we didn't plan this for it to all go to hell. The guests haven't even arrived yet, so we have time. Now, where is my dress?"

"It's in the closet," Lily said, a bit breathlessly, "Ok, thank you. I was panicking." Adelaide smiled.

"I know," She moved quickly, as promised, and made her way to the closet and pulled out her dress. It was a strapless crème colored dress with a chocolate brown sash wrapped around the middle. It stopped at mid thigh, and her shoes were chocolate brown to match the sash. That had been the only part of her outfit she had brought to her house, and was already wearing.

"You look great, by the way," Adelaide said as she hooked her dress on the back of the door. Lily blushed, and glanced down at her feet. Her wedding dress was very pretty, with a swooping neckline and long sleeves that flared out around her hands. The dress flared out from under her bust and the fabric pooled at her feet. Her hair was loose and curled slightly, and two white flowers kept her hair out of her face.

"Thank you," she murmured, "do you think James will think so?" Adelaide laughed.

"James would think you look good in a trash bag," she said. She quickly stripped off her outfit and pulled on her dress, getting Lily to help zip up the back, "What am I doing my hair like?"

"Elise should be back soon," Lily said as she twiddled her thumbs and chewed on her lip, "she went with Caryn to go check up on the guys." Adelaide sighed, and stuck with her makeup. She just finished when the door opened and Elise stuck her head in.

"Can we come in?" she asked, and when Lily nodded she slipped into the door with a still as thin as ever Caryn trailing behind with a large smile.

"I see Adelaide made it," she said, "I was beginning to think she'd leave us so she could spend the day shagging Sirius." Adelaide rolled her eyes before turning to Elise.

"Can you help with my hair?" she asked, "I have no idea what I'm supposed to be doing."

"Of course," Elise said with a smile, before hurrying over and using her wand to straighten her hair and situate it into a French Twist. After getting the basics she grabbed some bobby pins and hairspray to make sure it would stay in place.

"You're lucky you both have long hair," Caryn said as she lit up a cigarette, "I had to use a potion to grow my hair out so it could go up."

"Since when do you smoke?" Adelaide asked curiously, lightly touching her hair as she turned back to her friends.

"Right after graduation; Stevens got me hooked," she said before shrugging, "It's not that big of a deal." Adelaide refrained from commenting for her own sanity. She glanced at the clock and sighed before she hurried over and grabbed her bouquet made of white roses.

"We have a few minutes," she said before picking up Lily's bouquet, made up of red and white roses, and handing it to her, "We better start heading down."

-

"I'm nervous," Lily said as she stood in the waiting area behind a small wooden door that was as historic as the castle itself. She wringing her hands in front of her and her eyes darting around the room, "what if he doesn't show up? What if I get up there and he's not there?"

"Shush," Adelaide whispered soothingly, "You're being ridiculous. James loves you very much and has waited for this moment since third year."

"I thought he liked me since first year?" Lily said curiously, and Adelaide smiled slightly.

"According to Sirius, he's loved you since third," she responded, and Lily's cheeks flushed as she ducked her head. Adelaide laughed, before she gently patted her back and stepped away, "Come on, We need to get ready." Lily smiled shakily, her eyes filling with happy tears.

"You look lovely," her father whispered into her ear, gently patting her hand. Then, Pachelbel Cannon started to play, the small door opened and Adelaide made her way down a small set of stairs and onto the red carpeted isle, and was followed by Elise and then Caryn. Then there was Lily, her dress trailing behind her and happy tears building in her eyes as she spotted James who looked as if he had lost his breath. Adelaide was happy as she absently toyed with her engagement ring, knowing that one day she would be in Lily's place, and Lily would be in hers.

The room itself was called Auld Keep, and it was beautiful. The walls were rough and a several shades of brown that showed its age. On either side of the isle were black iron chairs with a brown seat and white and red roses tied along the inner chairs and facing the isle. At the front was a long table with a brown cloth and candles glowing softly, but most of the sight was blocked by the group.

"Dearly beloved, we are gathered here today…"

As Adelaide stood beside Lily as her bridesmaid, she had eyes only for Sirius, who stood beside James as his best man. His hair was pulled back into a low ponytail, and he was dressed in very nice (in her opinion) dress robes. While the whole thing went on, she watched him with adoration, half paying attention as James and Lily exchanged heartfelt vows that made Adelaide tear up at the devotion in their voices. Sirius noticed and winked at her, mouthing, 'I love you' and causing her stomach to flutter. She only barely heard when the priest finally spoke,

"You may now kiss the bride."

Adelaide clapped with a large smile as James held Lily close and kissed her, before pulling away with a large smile. They quickly made their way down the isle, and Sirius held his arm out to Adelaide before they too walked down the isle behind them.

"I can't wait," she whispered softly, "until I'm the one in the wedding dress." Sirius smiled.

"I can't wait until I see you in your wedding dress," he murmured into her ear, "and I can't wait until I'm standing at the alter with you." Adelaide smiled, and when they made it away from prying eyes she gently kissed him, ignored Caryn, who whooped not so quietly as she walked through the door with Remus, followed by Elise with Peter. Adelaide sighed and pulled away with a frown.

"I can wait," Sirius said with a smirk, "We have a whole house to ourselves later."

-

**Disclaimer: **Harry Potter and all things concerning belong to J.K. Rowling. I own Adelaide Vicknair, Vanessa Wolfe, Caryn Gree, Elise Barnes, Madeline Vicknair, Annalisa Bertucci, Professor Sicily and Jean Vicknair.

**A/N:** I hate weddings. Seriously. I'd like to say that I'm never writing a wedding again, but I have Sirius and Adelaide's to do. BLECH!! This sucks. I hate this chapter. Really. But cool thing is, is that Adelaide and Sirius are getting married at Chillingham Castle, one of the most haunted castles in England. I'm planning on giving it a Wizarding twist. MUAHAHA!!

You guys got about seven more chapters left until Wallflower ends. It might end up being a bit longer though.

Yours truly, And Sirius and Adelaide are all 'lovey dovey' because I watched The Notebook and I was in a fluffy mood. MUAHA!!  
B.E.N.


	21. The Order of the Phoenix

**Wallflower**

**Chapter Twenty-One: **Order of the Phoenix

Sirius was bored. Today was Adelaide's first day at SMU, and now he was left at home alone trying to figure out what to do. He thought maybe he could read, but he got tired of that after ten minutes, and then he thought maybe he could play the muggle card game, solitaire, but it only succeeded in reminding him that Adelaide was off at SMU and he was left at home alone. He blamed the fact that it was called 'Solitaire'.

So, he ended up mindlessly levitating objects to entertain him, and finally around three o' clock he heard the familiar 'pop' of apparition he grinned in relief. He turned from his seat on the couch to see Adelaide standing behind him with a large smile on her face.

"How was school?" he asked and her smile didn't fade as she bounded over to him and took a seat beside him before leaning and propping her head up on his shoulder.

"It's school, what do you expect?" she asked, but she giggled, "Other then that it was wonderful. The teachers all seem really nice, and no one hates me." Sirius chuckled.

"Yeah, it would kind of suck if everyone hated you right off the bat," he said, and she giggled, before sighing and letting her eyes drift close.

"I forgot how school was like," she murmured, "and I can't help but wish that you, James, Lily, and Remus were all there to stand by me."

"Well, I may not physically be there, but my minds constantly on you," he said, wrapping an arm around her wais and running his thumb over her hip, "I can't stop thinking about you and it's driving me insane." Adelaide hummed in response and for the moment the just sat there blissfully.

"We should have a Halloween party," she said suddenly, causing Sirius to glance down at her. Her eyes were still closed, but she was already smiling at the ideas going through her head.

"Oh really?" he asked, and she nodded before snuggling closer.

"We could invite all of our old friends that we never see any more," she explained, "and we can just have fun together and we can tell them about our engagement."

"Will we have time to plan it?" he asked, "I'm sure you have class work to do." Adelaide snorted and cracked open an eye to look up at him with an eyebrow cocked in amusement.

"Since when do you care about class work?" she asked.

"Since it's your future we're talking about," he said simply, "I could care less if I succeed in life, but if any thing I want you to succeed." She smiled and sighed again, before nuzzling her face closer to him.

"Technically, I have so much money I could sustain myself for over five lifetimes," she said, "so my education is more so I don't feel like a lazy bum. I never wanted to be one of those snobby rich kids who don't have to learn anything because they get all their wishes handed to them on a silver platter."

"And that's why I love you," Sirius cut in before she could work herself into a fit, "you don't slack off just because you have it easier then most." She sighed, and shook her head.

"Not really," she murmured, "I'm pretty ordinary once you think about it. I'm not like Lily, who's just so unique and incredibly heart-warming."

"But that's why I love you," Sirius pushed, angling himself so he could look at her face better, "I love the fact that you're so normal. You give my life some normalcy that's hard to come by when you're family hates you and your best friend is a werewolf. You're an attachment to the normal world and you keep me from getting to proud of myself." Adelaide snorted.

"And we all know what a disaster that could be," she murmured. He grinned, before leaning down and pressing his lips to her firmly, cupping her cheek with his hand. They pulled away slightly breathless. She smiled at him, before laying down on the couch and positioning her head in his lap with a tired sigh, "Who would we invite to the party?"

"If we have it," Sirius corrected, and she shrugged.

"Sure, whatever," she mumbled, "There's obviously James, Lily, Remus, and Peter."

"You want Peter to come?" he asked, and she shrugged.

"He's your friend, and if you want him here then he can be here," she said simply. He hummed and idly twirled a strand of hair around his finger, "Then there's Elise, and I guess Caryn. Do we have any friends other then that?" Sirius shrugged.

"Those are the only ones I remember," he said truthfully. Adelaide nodded.

"Then that's who we'll invite," she murmured.

"You really want to do this, huh?" he asked, and she nodded again before yawning and rubbing her eyes.

"Yeah. It'll be fun to have everyone together," she replied, cracking open an eye to look at him, "Are you hungry?"

"Not really, no," She laughed.

"Good, because I don't want to cook today," she mumbled, "We'll get Nobbie to fix something up." Sirius raised his eyebrows and chuckled.

"The day has finally arrived when Adelaide doesn't feel like cooking," he said dramatically, "The world must be ending!" she snorted and lightly hit his chest, before drifting off to sleep. Sirius sighed and rested his head on the back of the couch. He had waited all day for Adelaide to get home, and when she does she takes a nap first thing.

But hey, a tired Adelaide was better then no Adelaide at all. Even if she was tired, she still managed to find time to plan out a party, and by the next week she had sent out invitations and got down the plans for what was going to happen. Sirius tried helping out, but after a few minutes he got so lost he thought it would be best if he just laid back and help only when asked. Before long, it was Halloween and Sirius was left to sit on the couch and watch as Adelaide ran through the rooms, waving her wand and setting up last-minute decorations.

"Caryn's bringing a date," Adelaide murmured as she hurried by Sirius as she set up some floating Jack-O-Lanterns and conjured up some plastic bats and spiders that she charmed to fly or crawl around the house, "I forgot who, though."

"We've got two hours before they even start to arrive," Sirius said, watching her in amusement, "You need to calm down before you have a panic attack." Adelaide froze in mid step, before sighing and taking a seat beside him on the couch.

"You're right," she said after a second, "I need to calm down, relax, and take deep soothing breaths…" She sighed and closed her eyes, leaning against Sirius peacefully, "Why was I panicking again?" Sirius laughed and stared up at the ceiling that was now draped in fake cobwebs and spiders. There was silence as they sat there for an indefinite amount of time, when they heard a knock on the door.

"How long have we been setting here!?" Adelaide asked with wide eyes, glancing over at the clock. She swore, "it's eight o' clock!"

"Seriously?" he asked, glancing at the clock, "Huh. That was fast." Adelaide wasn't listening though, and she scurried over to the door and threw it open, smiling as she spotted Remus, who smiled as he saw her flustered expression.

"Lose track of time?" he asked casually, and Adelaide blushed and laughed in embarrassment.

"Yeah, I was panicking earlier and I sat down, and before I knew it, it was eight!" Remus kept smiling as she moved out of the way. Adelaide closed the door behind him and hurried into the kitchen when she waved her wand and the fridge opened for food to levitate out and arrange itself on the table, and the oven slid open and the still warm food to follow. She closed the doors quickly and smiled proudly, before getting out a punch bowl and pouring in some fruit punch.

"The house looks great," Remus complimented.

"Thanks," Adelaide and Sirius said simultaneously, causing them both to glance at each other with a raised eyebrow. Adelaide sighed and shook her head, when there was another knock at the door. She smiled at the two before hustling to the living room again and opening the door, where Lily and James stood with smiles and their arms wrapped around each other.

"Hey!" Adelaide said with a large smile as she hugged both of them and kissed them on the cheek, "how was Cancun?"

"Brilliant," Lily responded happily, her cheeks flushed, "I got so excited when we got the invitation."

"She gave me a papercut when she waved it in front of my nose," James inputted with a grin, "started panicking and promised to make it up to me." He winked and Adelaide blushed while Lily pushed him inside.

"So, what have you been up to?" she asked eagerly. They made their way into the kitchen, and it wasn't much later that there was another knock on the door and Peter, Elise, and her boyfriend Michael Abercrombie stood on the doorstep, Michael looking a bit out of place but smiled, and attempted to go with the flow. Thrty minutes in, Adelaide glanced at the door with furrowed eyebrows.

"Where's Caryn?" she asked suddenly, causing lily too glance at the door to.

"Probably made a pit stop with her boyfriend of the week for a quick shag," she said nonchalantly with a shrug. Adelaide sent her a scolding glance half-heartedly, when there was a final knock on the door.

"That must be them," she said under her breath, "I hope it's not Stevens or Parkers." Lily laughed and Adelaide hurried to the door, opening it with a smile. Her smile faltered a bit when she saw who was on the other side.

"Hello Caryn, Annalisa," she said sweetly, "I thought you said you were bringing a date?" Caryn tilted her head curiously, an odd smile toying on her lips.

"This is my date," she said innocently, "Annalisa Bertucci; we've been dating for two months now." Annalisa smiled alluringly at Adelaide and nodded her greeting.

"Oh!" Adelaide said, "Well, I'm sure you could understand why I thought differently." Caryn just smiled, and Adelaide noticed that her teeth were straighter and whiter then before, not to mention she was thinner and her cheeks looked as if they had caved in. She was the exact opposite of Annalisa, who was as full-figured as ever. Adelaide kept smiling and moved out of the way to allow them inside, closing the door behind them with wide eyes.

She had not seen that coming.

She hurried back into the kitchen with a calm expression, though her head was still reeling in surprise, and she could tell that the others were surprised as well; everyone except for Peter.

"I believe that's everyone," Adelaide said with a smile, ignoring the way Lily was looking at her, eyes screaming at her to talk with her in the other room. Adelaide kept smiling, ignoring all the surprised glances, "Who wants pie?"

"I'll take some," Annalisa said smoothly with a polite smile, "I've been craving pie all day."

Slowly people got used to her appearance and they acted as normal as ever, as if they were all friends. Annalisa seemed to fit right in, to most everyone's surprise, and had no problem with anyone.

"So, I hear you're attending SMU?" Annalisa asked as she licked whip cream off of her fork as she ate her pie, "How's that going?"

"Oh, it's all going really well," Adelaide said with a smile, "I miss Hogwarts, of course, but there aren't as many distractions at SMU as there were at Hogwarts."

"Perfectly understandable," Annalisa agreed, forking another piece of pie, "how do you and Sirius manage it?" Adelaide tilted her head slightly.

"What do you mean?" she asked curiously. Annalisa shrugged as she swallowed.

"Well, you're at school half the day, and Sirius is at home," she said, "Do you get to spend much time together?" Adelaide laughed, causing Annalisa to raise an eyebrow in confusion.

"You must not know," Adelaide said with a kind smile, "I moved in with Sirius after Hogwarts; after daddy died I couldn't go back home without having a breakdown." Annalisa formed an 'o' with her mouth, before twirling the whip cream with her fork.

"You've been together a long time now," she said idly, "aren't you guys sick of each other?" Adelaide just smiled and glanced off towards the living room where Sirius sat with Remus, James, and Peter, laughing heartily.

"I'm not tired of him," she said with a smile, "I don't think I could ever get tired of him." Annalisa hummed in acknowledgement.

"Are you planning on marrying him?" she asked, and Adelaide started in surprise.

"I completely forgot," she murmured, before grinning, "He already proposed." Annalisa smiled.

"Really? May I see your ring?" Adelaide nodded with a bubbly smile and held out her hand, while Annalisa gently grasped it and examined the ring curiously, and for a second Adelaide thought she saw jealousy flash through her eyes.

"It's really nice," she complimented, "It suits you well." Adelaide blushed.

"Thank you," she said, "I can't believe I forgot to tell everyone." Annalisa just smiled in understanding and released her hand.

"Well, you're probably just so relaxed that you didn't notice anything," she said before picking up her fork again, "Of course, you can tell everyone in time." Adelaide smiled before placing her plate in the sink.

"We should talk more some time," she said kindly, "for a Slytherin, you're not half bad." Adelaide winked playfully, and Annalisa laughed, though it didn't reach her eyes at all and instead she looked quite sad; Adelaide didn't mention it.

"Yes," she said softly, "You're not half bad, yourself." She stared for a minute, before coughing and standing, "Well, I'm getting tired, I'm afraid that I'll need to leave."

"Are you sure?" Adelaide asked with a frown, "did I say something wrong?" Annalisa just smiled and waved her hand dismissively.

"No, no, none of this is your fault," she said, and Adelaide frowned as she clearly heard the dark tone of her voice. Annalisa acted normally though, "I'm just tired, and I have a big day ahead of me. You place, things to do, people to see, that sort of thing."

"Of course," Adelaide said with a small smile, "It was lovely talking to you." Annalisa hummed slightly, and her eyes were very distant.

"I'll talk to you again soon," she said idly, "just tell Caryn I went home if she asks, ok?" Adelaide nodded and Annalisa offered her one more brief smile, before apparating on the spot. Adelaide was silent for a moment, before she picked up Annalisa's empty plate and placing it in the sink. She remained silent, before sighing and heading into the living room with a smile on her face as she pushed Annalisa to the far corner of her mind.

The party ended at eleven, with Lily and James being the last to leave when all the food was gone, and all that was left was the dishes. Of course, Nobbie insisted on cleaning up and Adelaide turned to Sirius with a smile before they headed up and went to sleep. November passed quickly with Adelaide passing through her classes with ease, and then the twentieth of December came, giving Adelaide two and a half weeks off of school, which she spent decorating for Christmas and going out to eat with Sirius.

On Christmas morning, Sirius woke up to Adelaide nibbling on his ear and giggling. He groaned and opened an eye to see Adelaide lying on top of him, something he had grown accustomed to after the months of living together.

"It's Christmas," she murmured softly, burying her nose into his neck and sighing blissfully, "but now that I've woken you up, I don't want to get up." Sirius chuckled and wrapped his arms around her waist and running his fingers up her back.

"We can just pass the time some other way," he offered, and he felt a shiver move down her spine. She turned her head to watch him, and she giggled suddenly.

"Well, as tempting as that sounds if we don't get down soon Nobbie will probably come up to make sure we didn't die in our sleep; he's been known to do that," she explained, and Sirius groaned.

"Can't we make a 'do not disturb' sign?" he asked pitifully, and she laughed before pushing up and straightening her top.

"Well, if we were to take a shower…" She trailed off and arched an eyebrow. He grinned before he pushed himself up onto his elbows and nodded his head towards the door.

"Lead the way,"

After they had their fun in the shower, they got dressed and made it downstairs beside a hand rail decorated with bright white lights and garland, they came to the living room where there was a Christmas Village setting peacefully on top of the mantle and snowing, a large tree decorated in white lights and a variety of ornaments, and mistletoe hanging at every doorway in the house 9not that they needed it).

"Happy Christmas," Adelaide said with a smile as she grabbed one of the presents under the tree and handed it to him with a smile.

The day passed peacefully with them exchanging presents and having eggs benedict for breakfast (to Adelaide's absolute delight) before they spent the rest of the day lounging on the couch and watching the Christmas Village, which was really like a muggle soap opera. At one point in time, the baker was yelling at his daughter for frolicking with the rival bakers son, having walked in on them in their room, and the judge was just about to go home to see his wife cheating on him with his cousin, who was blackmailing her.

"Wizards have sick twisted minds," Sirius murmured, and Adelaide snorted before snuggling back into his arms.

"We are very odd, aren't we?" she asked, when a knock sounded at the door. Adelaide blinked in surprise before standing and hurrying towards the door with a frown. She opened it quickly, and smiled in confusion.

"Professor Dumbledore!" she said in surprise, "What…how can I help you?" Dumbledore smiled and his eyes twinkled.

"Actually, there was something I had wanted to talk to the two of you about for a few months now," he explained, "I hope this is not a bad time…?"

"Oh, not at all," Adelaide said with a shake of her head. She moved out of the way and closed the door behind him, and offered him a seat. He sat in the recliner and Sirius watched him in confusion, but couldn't think of anything to say. Dumbledore kept a peaceful smile on his face, and held out two pieces of candy.

"Would you care for a Lemon Drop?" he asked pleasantly, and they both shook their heads.

"No, thank you," Adelaide said politely. Dumbledore nodded, and stuck his hand back into his robe. His smile turned serious and he eyed them carefully.

"I believe you are both aware of the current state of the Wizarding world," he said without preamble. They both nodded, and he continued, "and correct me if I'm wrong, but I believe you have previously expressed you desire to help fight the war against Lord Voldemort?"

"Yes," Sirius responded, while Adelaide simply nodded. Dumbledore smiled.

"Then I believe I have a proposition for you," he said kindly, "how would you two like to join the Order of the Phoenix?"

-

**Disclaimer: **Harry Potter and all things concerning belong to J.K. Rowling. I own Adelaide Vicknair, Vanessa Wolfe, Caryn Gree, Elise Barnes, Madeline Vicknair, Annalisa Bertucci, Professor Sicily and Jean Vicknair.

**A/N:** OK, this bugs me. It's you 'shake your head' when it's a negative gesture, and 'nod' when it's a positive gesture. I hate it when someone says that someone shook their head, but they mean it as if they nodded their heads. It's confusing.

And I'm losing my steam, I think…I'm just so tired all the time and I can't process my thoughts very well…I'm sorry about that if my chapters seem to be moving fast. There are only 27 chapters in this, and after watching the order of the phoenix for the sixth time I got ideas. I'm not sure how my updating streak is gonna last, since it finally caught up with me and now I have writers block, so don't be surprised if I update a bit later then every other day. Sorry.

OK, Annalisa is back in the picture and is DEFINITELY up to something. Why else would she date Caryn??? Because we know she isn't a lesbian…well, I know. I hope you know by now. O_o. I thought chapter 15 cleared that one up…

Yours truly,  
B.E.N.


	22. Birthday Surprise

**Wallflower**

**Chapter Twenty-Two: **Birthday Surprise

The first meeting of the Order that Sirius and Adelaide attended was five days later, and they were surprised to see not only James and Lily, but Remus and Peter as well. Remus had apparently been the first of the friends to be recruited, and he later recommended that his friends join, certain not only that they were trust worthy, but that they wanted to aid in the defeat in the Dark Lord.

The order held meetings at different locations on the thirtieth of every month, and the pattern continued until May without a hitch in their daily lives. Throughout this time, Adelaide attended school every weekday, while on Saturdays she and Sirius would go out on a date, and Sundays they would lounge around in the house entertaining themselves in some way or another (there favorite involved sending Nobbie on a wild goose chase so that they could have alone time without Nobbie checking in on them suddenly). Either that or they would visit with their friends.

The oddest part about this routine was that Annalisa would randomly pay visits to her and they would converse, and Adelaide was almost positive she had made a friend, or at least an acquaintance. Annalisa would leave after only ten minutes, and would return for another random visit the next week. Adelaide was worried now, for the past three weeks Annalisa seemed to have mysteriously disappeared.

"Where are we going?" Adelaide asked as she locked the front door and tightened her jacket around her, "It's Wednesday!"

"It's a surprise birthday party," Sirius said bladly, and she laughed.

"Right, of course it is," she murmured, before gripping his arm, "So, what's going on?"

"I told you already," Sirius said with a shrug before apparating. Adelaide opened her mouth after the odd feeling disappeared to retort and began shrugging her jacket off.

"Happy Birthday, Adelaide!"

Adelaide gasped in surprise as she froze midway with her jacket off, and Sirius grinned from his spot behind her. She realized then that they were at James and Lily's house.

"I told you they were planning a surprise party," he said cockily. She gaped for a moment, before hitting him in the chest with a smile.

"Git," she said playfully, before she hurried foreword to hug James and Lily tightly, "Thank you!"

"How's living with Sirius been?" Lily asked playfully, "Feel like ripping your hair out yet?" Adelaide laughed.

"I could ask you the same thing," she said, causing Lily to laugh and hug her again.

"I fixed all your favorite foods," she said proudly, "and I only messed up once!" Adelaide laughed, before hurrying over to Remus and hugging him tightly.

"Thank you!" she said again, and he laughed. Now that everyone had been hugged she stepped back with a large smile, "So, where are my presents?" she asked playfully.

"You don't get any," Lily said sarcastically with a roll of her eyes, "They're all hidden. We aren't giving them to you until we feel like it." Adelaide raised an eyebrow.

"You're being serious, aren't you?"

"Nope, I'M being Sirius," Sirius quipped, avoiding her hand as she lazily swung her fist back in his general direction. He laughed before finally pulling off his jacket and hanging it on the coat rack

"You knew about this?" she asked, turning to him with a grin stuck to her face. He nodded.

"I even told you about it, but you didn't believe me," he said nonchalantly, causing her to laugh and hug him again. He shrugged and hugged her back, and she turned towards Lily with a grin.

"So, you said you cooked my favorites?" she asked eagerly. Lily smiled and nodded proudly.

"James said it was better then when you cooked it," she gloated, and Adelaide's smile widened.

"And now you're required to pass the recopies on to your children until you're old and laying on your deathbed," she continued, "and that's an order!" Lily smiled and nodded, saluting her mockingly.

"Aye, aye, cap'n!" she said, and Adelaide laughed again. Lily kept smiling as she waved her wand, and a large cake floated in from the kitchen. It was a simple vanilla cake with buttercream frosting decorated with chocolate covered strawberries. Adelaide grinned and snatched off a strawberry, sticking it into her mouth with slight difficulties. Juice dripped down her fingers as she bit around the leaves and landed on the floor. She giggled and pulled away, chewing at the hardened chocolate.

"That's a juicy strawberry," she murmured around the fruit. Lily pouted and gently pushed her in the shoulder.

"You ruined the cake!" she chastised. Adelaide shrugged and smiled again.

"I guess I'll just have to eat it then!" she reasoned. She moved for another strawberry, but was beaten by Sirius, who grinned before eating the fruit in victory.

"Haha," he mocked with a mouth full of strawberry. Adelaide pouted before tugging on a piece of his hair.

"Git," she said simply, before turning back around. She glanced to her right and saw presents stacked up, and smiled, "Are those my birthday presents??"

"No, we just found random boxes and decided to wrap them up," James said with a roll of his eyes, "_yes, _those are your presents." Adelaide stuck out her tongue at him, but kept smiling.

"How long have you been planning this?"

"Since last month," Remus said with a shrug, "Wasn't that hard to plan if you want me to be honest."

With the original shock finally passed, they moved to the Kitchen where Lily proudly displayed her cooking abilities, and gained many complements on the food (mainly from Adelaide, who looked as if she were going to die and go to heaven). Adelaide was laughing at something Remus had said, before she sighed and stood up.

"I'll be right back," she said with a smile. She walked quickly upstairs, and quickly went to the restroom. She hummed as she washed her hands, before reopening the door and closing it softly behind her.

"Happy birthday, Adelaide,"

Adelaide jumped in surprise and turned to see Annalisa leaning against the hallway wall, watching her passively and gently tapping the wand on her chin. Adelaide smiled, but felt apprehension fill her; how did she get here?

"Hello, Annalisa," she said with a smile, "What are you doing here?" Annalisa smiled and began to twirl her wand idly between her fingers, causing Adelaide to stiffen and watch her with narrowed eyes.

"Do you have any idea how jealous I am of you?" she asked softly, causing Adelaide to freeze and watch the Italian in confusion.

"Why would you be jealous of me?" Adelaide asked, and Annalisa seemed to catch on to her train of thought and tutted.

"No, not of your appearance or of your money; I know that I am pretty, and I am very rich. I'm jealous of you because of how many friends you have." Adelaide relaxed slightly, and continued to watch her as she toyed with her wand. Annalisa smiled bitterly.

"You are so incredibly lucky, you're life is just playing out like a fairytale. You go through heartache, but you have your knight in shining armor to pick you up, to coddle you and to treat you s if you were the only thing that mattered. It's so sickening it's unbearable for me to stand here and look at you, knowing that if I had made a different choice I could be one of those people-!" she cut herself off, her voice having gotten louder as she continued, and took several deep breaths, "I could have been one of those people you would call a friend, and I could possibly have my fairytale ending. I could have had a different life."

"You can change," Adelaide said softly, and hand gripping her wand as a chill went down her spine, "You _can_ be one of those people-!"

"It's too late for me!" Annalisa cried, stalking foreword and cornering Adelaide against the wall with a feral look in her eyes, "I made a choice long ago, and I can't change it. I've made my decision, and I have to live with it!" She yanked herself away and paced slightly for a moment, before turning on her heel and facing her again.

"I'm going to tell you a little story," she explained, watching Adelaide with surprisingly cold eyes, "and you're going to be a good girl and listen to every word that comes out of my mouth." Adelaide quickly gripped her wand in her pocket, and Annalisa just smiled.

"I'm not going to actually attempt to harm you," She cooed, "I just want you to understand the reasoning behind all my choices, about why I am a death eater."

"_Expelliarmus!" _

"_Protego!" _

The spell backfired and Adelaide barely ducked out of the way in the narrow hall. Adelaide kept her wand pointed at her, and Annalisa frowned.

"You know, I don't want to hurt you," she said calmly, "I actually am rather fond of you. So, as a favor, please listen to what I have to say so you can understand me, and not hate me as you no doubt would if I chose to stay silent."

"You have five minutes," Adelaide said calmly, "before I curse you to oblivion." Annalisa smiled grimly.

"When I was sorted, I was given a choice," she said without preamble, "I could either be placed in Slytherin, or Gryffindor. I believe I had the longest sorting of the bunch, yes?" she kept going without waiting for a response, "I made my choice based on infatuation. On the train I had sat with one Austin Mulciber, and fancied his cute appearance and his personality, which at the time was rather polite and charming.

"He mentioned to me how only the most powerful witches and wizards were sorted into Slytherin, and that he wanted to be a Slytherin," Annalisa smiled slightly, and looked incredibly bitter for a moment, "So, I decided that to make him and my parents proud, I would be placed in Slytherin. I had a choice, and I chose my family and my crush over what the hat said would have been a long and healthy life with a husband who dotes on me. With Slytherin, I was doomed to die. I chose Slytherin."

"Why?" Adelaide asked incredulously, eyes narrowed, "Who would willingly choose death?" Annalisa's smiled faded and she watched Adelaide carefully.

"Would you die for Sirius?" she asked softly, and Adelaide nodded. Annalisa smiled, "Then you see my point." There was silence, before Annalisa spoke again: "_If you choose Gryffindor you will live a long prosperous life with a husband who dotes on you and worships you, but there is no true love…if you choose Slytherin, you will most definitely find a love with more passion then you could imagine. You will die in attempt to protect him and your family. Which do you choose? _That was what the hat said to me. I was given a chance to be a living Juliet, with my own personal Romeo. In my mind, it was the perfect fairytale ending."

There was more silence, and Adelaide didn't lower her wand. Annalisa sighed, "You and I…we are more alike then I would like to admit."

"We are nothing alike," Adelaide said softly, her grip tightening, "no matter what you say." Annalisa watched with sick amusement, and sighed again.

"We both lost a parent at a young age," she said solemnly, "and were raised by a single parent, but you were lucky. You're parents always loved you. My mother was an alcoholic, my father was abusive, and my little brother was beaten to death by my mother in a drunken rage after my father passed away. I watched my little brother die when I was only ten years old. I arrived at Hogwarts, was sorted into Slytherin of my own choice, and then I saw you. You remember your sorting, correct?"

"Yes," Adelaide bit off.

"Everyone knew your name. Everyone was aware that the last descendant of Morgan le Fay, the greatest sorceress in the world, had married Jean Vicknair, the heir to the Vicknair fortune, and had two children. You were one of those children. Based on your mothers past, I expected you to be sorted into Slytherin with me, and I longed to be your friend. You were endearing, the way you blushed and stuttered and how you tripped slightly on the last step."

"What do you know of my mothers past!?" Adelaide asked angrily, "My mother was a great woman, even if she was sorted into Slytherin!" Annalisa frowned.

"You don't know?" she asked innocently. Adelaide tightened her grip, and Annalisa sighed, "Your mother was a pureblood fanatic. She was the lioness, and muggles were Gazelle. She enjoyed torturing them."

"You're a liar!" Adelaide spat.

"Your mother went to school with the first death eaters," she said, pulling a picture from her pocket, "and was a death eater all her life. She was completely enthralled with the Dark Lord and was one of his most loyal followers." She showed her the picture, and Adelaide's heart stopped. It was a picture from her mothers life before she met Jean, and she was hanging out with several people and showing off their arms, where a skull and snake rested eerily.

"She hid it from you, because she knew what life would be like for you if you were raised with these sort of people, her sort of people," she said softly, sticking the picture back in her pocket and watching Adelaide's expression, "she didn't die of sickness: your father killed her during a raid in Diagon Alley. You and your sisters memories were altered with a strong memory charm."

"Shut up…" Adelaide whispered. Annalisa continued:

"She begged with him to change your memories so that they wouldn't think less of them. He did so because his love for her was so strong, and he wanted her memory to be a good one."

"You're lying!!" Adelaide cried, and Annalisa sighed. There was a large crash from downstairs, and Annalisa smiled grimly.

"Looks like my friends are here," she said simply, "I really wish we could have been friends."

"Don't lie to me!" Adelaide said angrily, "My mothers best friend in Hogwarts was a muggle born!"

"That was before she knew," Annalisa said softly, "When she found out she left her to die, which she did five years later in a raid. You mother was the one to kill her."

"SHUT UP!"

She waved her wand and Annalisa ducked out of the way as a bright green light attempted to hit her. She quickly threw a curse towards her and darted downstairs. Adelaide followed and saw Sirius and James facing off against Lucius Malfoy and Remus and Lily fighting a laughing Bellatrix Lestrange. Annalisa turned and began to throw hexes towards Adelaide, who simply erected a shield and got closer to her, throwing curses and hexes at her.

"You don't want to kill me," Annalisa called over the sounds of cursing from Sirius as he narrowly avoided a Cruciatus curse, "You don't want to kill someone who knows so much about the mother you lost-!"

"You don't know _anything_!" Adelaide screamed, "_Crucio!!"_

The spell connected with Annalisa's chest, causing her to crumple to the floor and scream, thrashing about wildly as pain wracked through her body. Adelaide was breathing heavily before lifting the spell and leaning down beside Annalisa, who was pale and sweaty.

"Don't preach to me," she whispered harshly, "because you need it more then I do." Annalisa giggled dryly.

"That's a strong _Crucio_ for someone who's never used it before," she commented, "are you sure you haven't done it before? It would make sense, seeing as you are related to a former Death Eater."

"Don't you dare talk about my mother! _Crucio!"_

Annalisa began to scream again, and Adelaide lost her concentration as she was jerked backwards by Remus, and Annalisa gasped for breath.

"Calm down," Remus murmured into her ear, "you're over reacting." Adelaide clenched her fist around her wand and glared at Annalisa, who was slowly regaining her breath.

"I'll make sure to not bug you about her again," she coughed. The Italian stumbled up, looking as if she went through hell and back, and grinned slightly: "and on another note, I'll have you know that if my child dies it will be all your fault."

Annalisa apparated and Adelaide stared open mouthed at the spot, that was empty save for a small piece of paper. There was silence around her, and Remus moved only for Sirius to gently place a hand on her shoulder.

"Adelaide?" he asked softly. She gently jerked her shoulder from under him and moved foreword before picking up the paper.

'_Happy Birthday, Adelaide. Sorry for ruining it. To make up for everything, here's a little present for you. These three passages hold a message that is the same, but found in different ways. Scramble the words, rearrange the letters, anything you can think of to discover what they all have in common; it may just save you and your friends lives one day._

_1) "Don't you know that  
trust is a fickle thing and that  
Peter is the name of a saint?"_

_2) "Did one notice that  
Thorough relationships used so truthfully  
Puts everyone to ease respectively?"_

_3) "Don't you learn from my lesson  
that trust is hard to find  
and that Peter the Great reformed Russia, but at great human loss?"_

_Have fun figuring it out, if you can._

_Annalisa'_

Adelaide stared at the note, not really reading what was written, before dropping to her knees, burying her face into her knees, and crying.

-

**Disclaimer: **Harry Potter and all things concerning belong to J.K. Rowling. I own Adelaide Vicknair, Vanessa Wolfe, Caryn Gree, Elise Barnes, Madeline Vicknair, Annalisa Bertucci, Professor Sicily and Jean Vicknair.

**A/N:** So, they know Annalisa's a death eater and Annalisa's showing her true colors by warning Adelaide. OMG WHAT NEXT!?! So, if you can figure those little things out, say so and give your answer/ I thik it's kind of easy, but of course I made it, so…have fun!!!

So…Annalisa was with child…Adelaide snapped…we learned that Adelaide's mother wasn't as innocent as she thought…Annalisa's sneaky…Annalisa is jealous of Adelaide….a rather enlightening chapter, dontcha think? I also found out I work better if I procrastinate, like I did with this. WHOOT! And you wanna know why I procrastinated? Sims 2 for PC. I made the Black house and created Sirius and Adelaide. (O_O)

I also made Annalisa, but it's not her, per se, but someone who is similar to her. And I made Caryn, but prettier...cuz I don't like unattractive sims (AKA stick thin like Caryn...not that it's always unnatractive, but in her case...), which is why I end up making fifty families and only playing with 2: so the ones I play with can have pretty friends. I kill of my neighbors I dislike by trapping them in fences whenever they come to visit. Tis all in good fun.

Yours truly,  
B.E.N.


	23. Vows and Promises

**Wallflower**

**Chapter Twenty-Three: **Vows and Promises

Sirius watched Adelaide cautiously as entered her bedroom and saw her curled up in a ball, staring at the wall and not saying anything.

"You're going to miss school," he said. She shrugged.

"I don't feel well," she murmured before snuggling closer into her pillow, "I'll go back tomorrow." Sirius frowned before moving foreword and taking a seat beside her on the bed and toying with her hair absently.

"It's not your fault," he said after a moment, "You didn't know-."

"But the problem is, is that it is my fault!" Adelaide protested, turning to her other side and looking up at him with glistening eyes, "I used the Cruciatus cruse on her! That's illegal!"

"You were upset, and you weren't thinking," he interjected. Adelaide shook her head angrily.

"No, I knew exactly what I was thinking!" she said, "I wanted her to be in pain, and I wanted her to beg for me to stop! I wanted her to never speak again, because she was so annoying, and _I wanted her dead_!" She breathed out angrily before rolling back over and staring at the door, "because I couldn't control my emotions, somebody died."

"She could have been lying," Sirius offered, but Adelaide shook her head.

"No, she wasn't. She was acting all calm, but you didn't look her in the eye. She was scared, worried, and panicking. "She was pregnant, and if she looses that child, it's going to be all my fault."

"No it won't," Sirius protested, watching her as she wallowed, "She knew she was pregnant when she decided to come. It's her own fault, and she obviously didn't care about it if she decided that going was the better option." Adelaide didn't say anything and just curled up tighter and cried. Sirius kept frowning and remained in his spot, his hand resting on her head in what he hoped to be a comforting manner. They remained that way for the better part of the night.

Time, after that, seemed to fly by. It didn't take much to send Adelaide into a panic, and with the last day of school until the summer drawing nearer, she was found studying more then ever and avoiding any conversations that could possibly lead to her erratic behavior. It was only near the end of June that Adelaide was back to normal, albeit a bit more aware of everything that happened. She kept the note from Annalisa stored in her bedside drawer and didn't look at it.

On July 2, when Adelaide arrived home from school she was smiling widely. Sirius had gotten up to move into the Kitchen and was about to turn to greet her when she jumped onto his back with a squeal, causing him to stumble in surprise.

"You seem happy," he noted dryly. She kissed him on the cheek before sliding off his back, giving him the chance to turn and face her head on.

"Because I am," she chirped, "I passed all of my classes with flying colors, and apparently I had accidentally got placed in classes several years above what a normal freshman should have been able to do. So, with all that in mind, they think that if I keep up the progress then I'll be able to graduate next year."

"That's excellent," Sirius congratulated. Adelaide nodded excitedly, her hair slipping out of its ponytail.

"I know, right?" she agreed in an upbeat voice. She hugged him again, before kissing him with a grin, "So, we have two options: One is we can go out and get something to eat, or two: you can take me upstairs and we can eat later."

His answer was kissing her roughly, and tugging her towards the stairs.

Adelaide awoke the next morning, tangled up in their bed sheets and pressed against Sirius' chest. She sighed blissfully, turned and pressed her face into his shoulder, before murmuring, "We're getting married in three days."

"Mmhmm,"

"Are you scared?" she asked, glancing over at him. He shook his head.

"No, because I know that afterwards I'll have you all to myself," he explained, "and I couldn't be happier."

It didn't feel long, but those three days passed quickly and before they knew it Adelaide was setting in a back room at Chillingham Castle, the most haunted castle in England. Though Muggles never really saw the full blown apparitions, the ghosts had a good sense of humor so even muggles were scarred to go into the castle.

"You look so pretty," Lily said with a smile as she hugged her friend, who looked as if she were about to hyperventilate. Adelaide gave her a shaky smile, and closed her eyes before taking deep breaths.

Her wedding dress was strapless and had a corset with black lacing up the back and black crystals embedded in abstract floral designs. The skirt flowed and a black diamond broche was on her left hip causing the material to drape along her legs. She wore strappy black stilettos that showed off her white tipped toes and matched the black designs on the dress.

"Okay," she said with a smile, "I'm calm, I'm good."

"Excellent," Elise said, hopping down from her perch on the table, "You look lovely."

"Thank you," Adelaide replied, and she waited patiently as Elise did her hair, holding it back with a white diamond hairclip and allowing it to hand freely down her back in it's usual spiral curls, though it now only reach just below her shoulder blades. The bridesmaid dresses were black dresses that flowed out from a fitted strapless top with white beading along the middle to act as a belt with matching black stilettos.

"The wedding's going to be perfect," Caryn putt in from her seat, a cigarette hanging from her mouth, "You did a good job at planning it." Adelaide smiled at her, and Lily glanced at the clock.

"Caryn, put that out," she said shortly, "We've gotta start heading down." Caryn did so with a sigh, before they quickly made their way what was known as the Elizabethan Great Hall, and Adelaide held her bouquet as she bit her lip, before quickly stopping as to not ruin her make up. Soon, they were waiting outside a large set of wooden doors, when 'At Last' by popular muggle artist Etta James began to play, and Caryn smiled at Adelaide before taking Peter's arm, and heading out of the doors.

"I still can't believe you invited her," Lily murmured, "I hear she's still dating Annalisa, though. Having her here makes me nervous."

"How do you think I feel?" Adelaide whispered, and Elsie took Remus' arm and headed down the aisle. Adelaide pushed the memory back, and Lily offered her a small apologetic smile.

"I gotta go," she murmured, and the conversation ended as Lily took James' arm and they made their way down the aisle. Adelaide waited for a moment, before she stepped through the doors and made her was down the aisle. Her eyes pricked with tears as she saw Sirius watching her with adoration, and as she remembered that her father wasn't there to lead her down the aisle. She reached the front and stood beside Sirius just as her favorite part of the song played.

'_You smile  
and then the spell was cast  
And here we are in heaven  
for you are mine at last '_

The song ended, and silence come over the audience, and Sirius winked at Adelaide and mouthed, 'I Love You'. The priest, which was actually a hundred year old ghost, smiled at them before opening his transparent book.

"Dearly beloved, we are gathered here today…"

-

Adelaide smiled as Sirius stood behind her, his hands over hers as they grasped the knife and cut into the cake, her smile widening at the clapping that came from their friends as the knife cut through the cake easily. She giggled, as Sirius mocked them quietly in her ear, before they cut out squares of cake and held them, Sirius with an evil glint in his eyes.

"Open wide," he said with a grin. Adelaide snorted, and before he could react she had smeared the cake on his face, causing him to blink in surprise and laughter to fill the reception hall.

"You should take your own advice," she said slyly, squealing as he shoved his slice of cake in her face. She giggled, before kissing him and licking the cake off of his face.

"The cake's good," she said as she pulled away with a grin. He laughed and they quickly grabbed a napkin and whipped off their faces, Adelaide glad she used magic to make sure her make up wouldn't smear. The Reception was not that crowded and everyone was having a good time, eating food and listening to the music that played, which was a nice variety of muggle and magical artists. Ghosts were flitting in and out of the room and offering their congratulations.

"Adelaide?" Caryn asked as she came up behind her, looking fairly lonely without Annalisa to hang on to. Adelaide turned and smiled politely, and was glad Annalisa had enough sense to turn down Caryn's invite to accompany her.

"Yes?" she asked politely. Caryn smiled, the movement causing her skin to stretch across her bony face.

"I'm afraid I need to leave soon; Annalisa is expecting me at home. Apparently she has a big surprise planned," She smiled, and Adelaide stiffened.

"Be careful," she said in a tight voice, while Sirius' grip on her hand tightened. Caryn laughed and nodded, before giving her a soft kiss on the cheek and walking briskly out of the room. Adelaide shared a significant look with Sirius, before he smiled and tugged her towards the dance floor.

"I don't think I've danced enough yet," she said. She smiled in relief, and eagerly followed him out and cleared her mind of worries.

-

Annalisa was silent as she walked down the long, dark hallways and her heels clicked on the ground beneath her, shivers running up and down her spine. She ignored all the glances sent her way, and behind her, Caryn looked as if she were going to be sick.

"Why are you leading me here?" she asked, "You said you had a job offer."

"And I do," she said stoically, "You'll be taking over my job."

"Which is what!?" Caryn cried, stomping her foot and halting in the middle of the hallway, "I refuse to go any further until you tell me what the hell is going on!" Annalisa stopped moving, before turning slowly and twirling her wand in between her fingers. Caryn stiffened and took a step back. Annalisa's eyes bore into her, making her feel vulnerable, and suddenly Annalisa sighed, tapping her wand against her chin.

"I don't know what I was thinking," she said idly, "You would never succeed like I have; you have no hope here, you and your Gryffindor heart." Caryn opened her mouth to complain, but in a quick movement Annalisa pointed her wand at her with a blank expression.

"_Avada Kedavra!"_

The green light reflected in Annalisa's eyes before connecting with Caryn's chest, sending her flying backwards into the stone wall and crumpling to the floor, her eyes wide open and completely blank. Annalisa stepped foreword and kneeled beside her, gently running her fingers down her face with a soft expression.

"Have you gone soft, then?" Mulciber asked, causing Annalisa to turn and spot him leaning against one of the many snake-like pillars, watching her with burning eyes. Annalisa smiled before standing and walking over to him, hugging him tightly to her and feeling her heart falter when he didn't hug her back.

"Why aren't you hugging me back?" she whispered softly.

"You killed a potential," he said slowly, eyes staring straight ahead at the wall, "We're running out of time, Annalisa. If you don't hurry up, you'll be forced to do this and I'll be forced to leave you." Her hands dropped to her sides and she stepped back form him, her eyes wide.

"You would leave me?" she whispered brokenly. He still refused to meet her eyes, but his jaw clinched and his temple throbbed. Suddenly, he punched the pillar, and glared at her, causing her to jump and take another step back.

"I took three crucios for you!" he spat angrily, "Why is it so hard to find someone willing to take your job? I almost died in an attempt to give us a better life, and you're wasting time! How many people have you slept with now?"

"I took two crucios and lost our child!" She screamed back, tears pulsing in her eyes, "Don't start yelling at me about what _you've _given up!" she jabbed him in the chest angrily, but his dark expression stopped her, and her hand fell limply beside her again. She looked down at her feet and tears began to flow, and for a moment she looked vulnerable. He softened, and gently took her back into his arms and stroked her hair.

"I'm sorry," she whimpered, "but she wouldn't have done it. She isn't pretty enough. She's too skinny." Mulciber sighed, and pulled away before leaning back against the pillar and watching as she used a glamour charm to hide her tear stained face.

"I've not slept with anyone save for the two from august, and Caryn," she whispered softly, "and I've already been punished for that." She waved her wand, and a glamour was removed from her arms, revealing how red and raw the skin was, "When I took a shower last night, I rubbed my skin raw, and I still feel dirty." Mulciber seemed to soften, his jaw relaxing and his eyelids drooping slightly. He gently took her back into his arms and held her close to him.

"I'll start looking too," he murmured, "I'm not letting you look alone. I'm not going to give you up that easily."

-

**Disclaimer: **Harry Potter and all things concerning belong to J.K. Rowling. I own Adelaide Vicknair, Vanessa Wolfe, Caryn Gree, Elise Barnes, Madeline Vicknair, Annalisa Bertucci, Professor Sicily and Jean Vicknair.

**A/N:** ….sorry I didn't update as quickly as usual, but you shouldn't complain, because I usually update like crazy and never regularly, but for Wallflower I've gotten into a pattern that's pretty predictable.

But the real reason I haven't been updating? I've been obsessing over the HBP movie, and my daddy (oh how I love him right now) preordered tickets for me, my step sister and step brother, to go see HP at seven forty-five. We had to actually wait in a line to get into the theatre, and then the only rows with empty seats next to each other were in the front row, which was awesome. The movie was awesome, even though different from the book in a lot of places, and I loved it. LOVED IT.

BUT, now that the HPB has passed, I am able to return my attentions to fanfiction (that and I'm taking a break from the Sims (finally)).

OH, and if u haven't seen HPB: just wait for the Felix Felicies (SP?) scene. Tis AWESOME and completely INSANE!!!!!!

And seriously, I want my wedding dress to look like that. I just came up with it on the top of my head, but I love it. Seriously.

Also, I was in Kentucky putting up with my grandmother, who already has boyfriend even though her husband just died ten months ago. She doesn't seem to care that we're still hurting over this, and that shoving her perfect little boy toy in our faces isn't going to make us like him. But on a better note (I guess):

OMG CARYN'S DEAD (I didn't like her too much anyway) WHAT'S GOING TO HAPPEN NEXT!?!?!?!?

Yours truly,  
B.E.N.


	24. Three Strikes

**Wallflower**

**Chapter Twenty-Four: **Vows and Promises

**PLEASE READ A/N AT BOTTOM OF PAGE**

The next three months were hell for the Marauders. Aside from Sirius' and Adelaide's honeymoon to Gatlinburg, Tennessee, in the United States where they rented out a log cabin for two weeks (Sirius was intrigued by all the muggle artifacts, and Adelaide calmly spent two hours explaining how a television works), it seemed that they were surrounded by death.

The news of Caryn's death didn't reach them until they returned, and they had already missed the funeral. Her parents (the snotty pricks they were) were simply told that there was a gas leak in her apartment that killed her. In reality, it was the work of the killing curse. There was no doubt in Adelaide's mind that Annalisa had something, if not everything, to do with Caryn's death. Sirius remained silent for the most part, but he agreed with her reasoning.

Unfortunately, Annalisa had a viable alibi stating that she was at her long-time boyfriend's house, and Mulciber was more then willing to save her skin. Sirius had a hard time keeping quiet about that, when it was well known within the order that Mulciber was a death eater. But the authorities believed him, as expected, and all charges were dropped and they simply named Lord Voldemort as the murderer.

Everything seemed to calm down when Adelaide and Sirius went to visit Remus in mid august, only to find that he was out with Peter already. They left a note, and before they even had a chance to apparate death eaters swarmed in on them. Adelaide fought off Bellatrix, who seemed delighted at the chance to smite her baby cousins wife, but almost died in the attempt. Sirius and Adelaide managed to escape with their lives and minor scrapes before they got a floo call from James, asking if they were alright. They had also been under attack, and it seemed the only two who weren't were Remus and Peter.

The rest of the month died with very small events, such as the death of fellow Order member Elise Barnes. The rest of her family, save her youngest brother, who had been staying the night at a friends, and her elder sister, who had moved out two months prior, had been found dead the next morning. October came around and Adelaide found herself at school, and this time Sirius was also gone most of the day for Auror training. She came home about thirty minutes earlier then him, and made sure to spend as much time as possible together, doing almost everything with each other.

The entire Wizarding world was living in a state of fear. No one knew who would die next, and people were getting married younger and younger, the youngest being seventeen. People would randomly check up on their friends, just to make sure that they weren't gone, or worse, dead. There was constant unease, and it was even affecting the children to young to understand.

The end of the month came, and for the first time in a while Sirius and Adelaide managed to pull away from each other and spend a holiday with their friends. They were spending Halloween and James and Lily's, and they invited only Remus and Peter (who turned the offer down glumly saying something about working late, though none of them knew he had a job).

They arrived at eight o'clock, and Lily opened the door with her trademark smile, and for the first time in a long while, their worries faded away and they felt as if they were back at Hogwarts with their friends.

"I'm so glad you could make it!" Lily said happily, taking them both into a large hug, "I feel like we haven't seen each other in ages!"

"Ditto," Adelaide laughed, with Sirius agreeing with a smile. They hurried in, closing the door quietly behind them, and made their way to the Living Room where James and Remus were already lounging on the couch, laughing hysterically at something.

"Sirius! Adelaide!" James said as he spotted them. He was smiling, and the two could tell he had had a bit to drink already, "It's been months!"

"Actually, you flooed last week," Sirius said with a grin, accepting James' hug with a laugh, "But you've always had a short memory; I wouldn't be surprised if you forget that you just greeted us." James grinned.

"Sirius! It's been weeks!" he joked, hugging him again. Adelaide giggled behind her hand before hugging Remus, who was laughing at James and Sirius' antics.

"It's good to see you looking so lively," Adelaide said as she pulled away, "Now all you need is to get married."

"Shouldn't he get a girlfriend first?" James asked patting her on the back. She just grinned.

"Whatever floats your boat," she said. James tilted his head.

"Technically water," he answered, "but doesn't it float on any liquid? Technically, I could float my boat on milk, or coffee, or pumpkin juice…"

"You complicate things," Lily said blandly, a slight smile curving on the corner of her lips, "You should stop thinking before your head explodes."

"That has been known to happen," James said sarcastically. Lily shrugged and pulled Adelaide to the kitchen.

"I made the recipe you gave me, I need your opinion on it…"

And then all hell broke loose.

The door was burst down, and the others immediately grabbed their wands with fierce determination. James was suddenly very sober, and the recipe was the last thing on anyones mind.

"You know what they say about the calm before the storm," Sirius said grimly. None of them recognized the death eaters, save for one, and he immediately began to duel Adelaide.

"I believe that I have some revenge to extract," Mulciber sneered angrily, his eyes gleaming predatorily. Adelaide was confused for a split second, before she put things together.

"If Annalisa was pregnant she shouldn't have come," she said blandly, dodging as he sent a curse her way. Mulciber barked out a laugh.

"As if that would stop any death eater," he said in an acidic voice, "but honestly," he put up a shield and deflected her curse, causing her to dart to the left to avoid it, "I can't help but think how disgusting you are. Using the Cruciatus Curse on a pregnant woman?" he tutted and sent a spell towards her, which she barely avoided, "Rather coarse, isn't it? Just like your mother was. I heard she killed her best friend."

"Shut up!" Adelaide spat, hurtling a Conjunctivitis Curse towards him. It hit him dead on and his eyes swelled shut. That didn't stop him though, and he began to randomly hurtle a variety of spells, almost hitting Remus and James several times. Adelaide curse, and took the opportunity and hit him with a stunner, causing him to crumple to the floor. The witch battling Sirius sent the animagus hurtling backwards with a quick spell and grabbed onto Mulciber before apparating away.

"Sirius!" Adelaide called.

"I'm alright!" he returned, before standing by James against the toad-like death eater who needed much, much better teeth. Adelaide hesitantly turned her back to them and Joined Lily, who was already beating the tar out of a shabby looking death eater that was otherwise farley attractive. Remus took out the death eater he was battling, and the other two noted the depletion of numbers. They grabbed on to their partner and quickly apparated away, leaving the others panting and glaring expectantly at the door. They stood there for five minutes before they slowly began to relax. James made quick work and grabbed the floo powder before sticking his head in after calling out Dumbledore's Office. He quickly explained what happened, and when he pulled out he turned grimly to his friend.

"Dumbledore thinks there may be a spy in the order," he said shortly. "The Longbottom's have also been attacked tonight." Lily grabbed on to Adelaide's arm tightly.

"Who?" she whispered, James shook his head, and sighed.

"I don't know," he said truthfully, "Dumbledore's planning on flooing the members he trusts indefinitely and questioning them. We were instructed not to trust anyone."

For a second, Adelaide's mind slipped to the note Annalisa left her, and she pushed away the guilt before trying to remember what they said.

But James had just said not to trust anyone. Didn't the note mention something about trust? She was positive that it mentioned Peter at least once. Her mind linked it together, but she bit her tongue to keep silent. Peter was trustworthy, despite their differences. She'd look at the notes closer when she got home. Right now was not the time to spring ideas.

She spent the next week analyzing the notes. She easily picked out 'Don't Trust Peter', but she kept searching for some other message. She stuck by her belief that Peter was trustworthy. And she wasn't wavering in the belief. She placed all their differences aside and analyzed what she knew of him, and that was that he was loyal to his friends and loved them as his own family. He wouldn't do that.

But it seemed that no matter how many times she repeated that to herself, she kept doubting everything.

-

"Adelaide, it's New Years; you need to relax," Sirius said as he watched her stare at the slip of paper, "You're going to strain your eyes, and then you'll need glasses all the time."

"I look perfectly fine in my glasses," she murmured with a small smile, She tucked the note back into her bedside drawer and turned to smile at Sirius, "There. Now what?"

"Well, Mrs. Black," he said slowly, his lip twitching up, "I think that you should come and lay down with your husband. Then we can find some other way to…entertain ourselves."

"We could play exploding snap," she said with fake enthusiasm, clapping her hands together, "That's the best idea you've ever had!" Sirius snorted and she smiled before flopping down on the bed and turning her head to watch him in amusement. He propped himself up on his elbow and ran his fingertips along the waist of her jeans. He smirked before positioning himself over her and trailing his hands down her thighs.

"Well," he murmured, his breath caressing her face, "as much as I enjoy a game of exploding snap, I can think of several other things we could do, each definitely more fun then exploding snap."

"Trade chocolate frog cards?" she joked with mock interest, "You know I've never been a fan of those things." Sirius chuckled under his breath before he began to trail kisses down her neck. She moaned slightly as he met the junction of her shoulder and her neck, and he slowly began to kiss the spot, before sucking on her neck. He threaded her hands into his hair with a sigh.

"I think," he murmured as he trailed his lips further down, "That you should stop guessing and let me show you what I had in mind." She gasped in a breath as he began to move his hand up her shirt.

"I think that's a brilliant idea," she murmured breathlessly. HE chuckled, and brought his lips back to hers in a ferocious kiss that sent chills down her spine, just as always.

All thoughts of the note were pushed to the back of her mind as they quickly shut the door in order to keep a certain overprotective house elf out.

-

**Disclaimer: **Harry Potter and all things concerning belong to J.K. Rowling. I own Adelaide Vicknair, Vanessa Wolfe, Caryn Gree, Elise Barnes, Madeline Vicknair, Annalisa Bertucci, Professor Sicily and Jean Vicknair.

**A/N: **blech. I want to move on to the sequel, which has been cut down from about 40 chapters to circa 18. I know, that's a big jump, but I was having a few difficulties wrapping my head around the whole thing. I mean, I want it to be as cannon as possible with (SPOLIER) Sirius living and all (END SPOILER) but then I had to stretch out the books to several chapters, but THEN I decided that I could group as much of one book as I could into one chapter, despite the length. THEN I questioned that, and I'm so completely confused. I want to be as accurate as possible, and I don't know how you guys would react if I skipped over entire years or not.

So, please tell me what you think on the skipping thing, because I think the sequel will be more difficult to write. I'm even thinking of grouping it together with this now and just changing the header to indicate it's another story. BLECH!!!! I HATE CONFUSION AND INDECISION!

…and I just noticed. James, Remus, Sirius. They all end with S, so if you want their name to be plural (or whatev) you have to do s' at the end instead of 's. Peter is the only one different. OMG. IT WAS A SIGN!

I was going to make it longer, but then the next chapter would be shorter, and I really want your response to the above idea. So please respond!!!!! Even if it's an IDC, it helps!!!!

Yours Truely;  
B.E.N.

P.S.: Only three more chapters left in wallflower, as it stands right now.


	25. Hope

**Wallflower**

**Chapter Twenty-Five: **Hope

Adelaide was unusually peppy the next few weeks (aside from her morning trips to the bathroom, where she came back looking less then pleased) and Sirius easily noticed a difference, especially when she would be smiling one moment and bawling on the floor the next because her favorite shirt had shrunk when it was cleaned. Little things made her happy, like Sirius offering her the last roll at dinner (which wasn't anything too new) and the smallest things sent her over the edge, like if Sirius forgot to tell Nobby to take out the trash. He blamed it on PMS, and soon the moodiness faded slightly and she entered an eternally happy phase. He left it to her grades, which were above average, and didn't think to ask what was up. So when Adelaide asked if she could have everyone over for dinner, he got slightly suspicious.

"What's going on?" he asked. She just kept smiling as she shrugged nonchalantly.

"Well, we haven't all gotten together just for the heck of it in a while," she said.

"Hey, I just hung out with Peter and James two days ago," Sirius defended. She rolled her eyes.

"I said _all _of us, not _some _of us," she teased, "I was thinking on the twenty sixth,"

"Of February?" Adelaide rolled her eyes with a grin plastered to her face; at this point Sirius found himself slightly wary.

"No, we're having everyone together two days ago," she said sarcastically, "Of course, February!"

"You could have meant March, or April," Sirius defended again, raising his hands out with a wry smile, "Are you going to tell me what has you so…peppy?"

"I just feel like something good is going to happen," she said mysteriously. Sirius raised an eyebrow and she just kissed him on the cheek before skipping off to the bedroom with a yawn. Another thing he noticed is that Adelaide almost always passed out around nine o'clock, and woke up very sluggishly. It was unusual, but again, he blamed it on school.

Sirius sighed and shook his head before moving towards the living room to rest, still unused to her sudden attitude adjustment.

Four weeks later, Adelaide was buzzing around and humming to herself; again, Sirius felt that he was completely oblivious. "You look like you've been put under a cheering charm," he mentioned as he finished buttoning his shirt, Adelaide forcing him into some 'nice' clothes. He had only grumbled under his breath for a moment before agreeing with her. Adelaide didn't even look away from the mirror, and he could see the large smile plastered on her face.

"I'm just happy," she said innocently, turning to face him with a sneaky smile, "is that such a crime?"

"You're starting to scare me," he joked, and she just kept smiling. She gave him a quick hug, causing him to raise his eyebrows, before she darted downstairs as the doorbell rang. He sighed and ran his fingers through his hair before following her down. Remus and Peter were standing in the kitchen while Adelaide smiled at them, and Sirius could tell that her peppiness was slightly unnerving them.

"Did Sirius practice a cheering charm on you?" Remus asked pleasantly, while Peter watched in odd fascination as she continued to bounce on her heels. She shook her head, and pouted.

"Why is it so odd for me to be happy?" she whined. Peter backed up slightly, but she overall ignored him, "We just have to wait for Lily and James, then we'll be good to go!" She turned quickly and hurried off into the kitchen, and Remus stood beside an awed (and slightly scared) Sirius.

"Do you have any idea of what's going on?" he asked. Sirius shook his head slowly.

"Not a clue," he murmured. Remus laughed slightly at Sirius' expression, before the bell rang again. They didn't even turn their heads, and Adelaide had gotten the door with a large smile, greeting James and Lily with large hugs. James immediately looked to Sirius and Remus for answers and only got shrugs in response.

"I'm so glad you made it!" she said as she pulled them in to the kitchen with a large (and slightly creepy) smile. Lily raised an eyebrow.

"We're five minutes early," she commented. Adelaide waved her hands and dismissed the statement without a second glance. Lily glanced at James, who shrugged.

Sirius found himself on edge during dinner, though Adelaide calmed down enough to appear normal. Peter looked entirely uncomfortable, but it was easily passed off as uneasiness around a girl who despised him. James, Sirius, and Remus tried their best to include him in conversation, but even if Adelaide had liked him he would have had next to no chance of getting a word in with the rate at Adelaide was talking. She found random things to prattle on about, from her shirt shrinking to what she made for dinner the other night.

"Did you see the shirt Emmeline Vance wore the other day? It looked terrible, really, and Moody really must do something about his hair–."

It took a few hours, but she was finally the same (save for the permanent smile on her face) and they had moved to the living room and sat out some drinks, while Adelaide sipped at some tea and observed everything.

"We should take a picture," she said suddenly. Lily blinked in surprise.

"Why?" she asked. Adelaide shrugged, but kept smiling.

"We need to make memories!" she exclaimed, waving her hand to express exactly how resolute she was, "how many pictures do we have of all of us, together, since Hogwarts?" there was silence, and that was enough of an answer for her. She sat her tea down and summoned a camera from upstairs (that Sirius had no idea she even had) and politely told everyone to stand in front of the fireplace. She raised the camera to her eye.

"Why don't you get Nobby to take the picture? That way you can be in it." Remus asked. Adelaide didn't waver.

"I can get one with me later," she said nonchalantly, "Now, everyone say September 24!"

"September 24!" They said, not really realizing they said it or bothering to ask why she chose that specific date. She smiled.

"I'M PREGNANT!" She screamed, before clicking the camera. There was a bright flash of light, and everyone felt their jaws drop to the ground while Sirius barely kept himself from falling into the fireplace.

"OH MY GOD!" Lily screamed, breaking away from the group to run at Adelaide and hug her, causing them to topple backwards, but otherwise remain upright. Sirius gaped for a moment, before he smiled widely. As Lily detached herself from Adelaide, he hurried foreword and took Adelaide into his arms, kissing her firmly on the mouth.

"I love you," he murmured. She giggled, dropped the camera, and wrapped her arms around his neck. He ran his tongue along her lip just as Remus coughed into his fist, breaking them apart with wide grins.

"I think this explains your odd behavior," James said with a shake of his head, "You two have barely been married for six months."

"So?" Lily asked, "I think it's wonderful!"

"I never said it wasn't!" James defended, "It's just I can't picture Padfoot being a father; especially the first of the marauders to become a father!"

"Expect the unexpected," Peter offered in a meek voice, averting his eyes from Sirius and Adelaide, who were promptly ignoring their friends and snogging in the middle of the living room.

In March (which Adelaide revealed was the end of her first trimester) Adelaide and Sirius were closer then ever, and Lily was constantly dropping in to say hello, and in turn James was in and out almost as often. Peter was absent almost all the time (not that anyone really noticed) and Remus popped in at fairly random intervals. Adelaide still pushed Sirius to have his monthly night with Remus, James, and Peter despite his wishes to stay with her, even though it was hard for Sirius not to worry about her.

"Go," Adelaide murmured against Sirius' lips the following month, "Remus needs you right now more then I do." Sirius shook his head and pouted, causing her to giggle.

"The doctors said that he might start kicking," he protested. There was now a noticeable bump, and you could tell she was pregnant. Sirius thought she pulled it of well, while she thought she looked like she swallowed a quaffle.

"It won't be the only time he kicks," she reasoned, gently pushing him away even though she craved his warmth, "and I'll tell you if he does kick, alright?" Sirius kept pouting, and Adelaide groaned as her resistance began to fall. Sirius pushed himself up so he was straddling her legs and pressed his hands to her stomach with a determined expression. Adelaide sighed, rolling her eyes.

"Are you being serious?" she asked, her eyebrows disappearing into her bangs. He smirked slightly but refrained from making a joke, and stared intently at her stomach, causing a blush to move up Adelaide's neck, "Sirius," she whined, "Remus needs you!" He kissed her chastely, but quickly returned to staring at her stomach. She growled in annoyance.

"Don't worry, I have time," he said with determination. She rolled her eyes again, "If you keep doing that, they'll get stuck there and then I'll never be able to see your pretty eyes again."

"Jackass," she murmured, but continued before he could make a retort, "You have to take a shower and get dressed, because I'm almost one hundred percent sure that they wont appreciate the smell of sex OR seeing you naked as much as I do."

"You never know, "Sirius said with a small grin, "I've always questioned Remus' sexuality; he's never dated anyone before, and sometimes the way he looks at me…" Adelaide erupted into laughter and smacked his chest.

"You cocky bastard!" she snorted, and Sirius just raised his eyebrows.

"You swear more when you're hormonal–,"

"I am absolutely positive that Remus likes girls!"

"–I think it's really sexy." She blushed again, and he leaned down to kiss her. She moaned and wrapped her arms around his neck again and he began to trail kisses down her neck. He prepared to move his hands further up, when she gasped loudly.

"Did you feel that?" she asked, causing him to move his head away and look at her curiously.

"Feel what?" he asked.

"The baby! He kicked!" She exclaimed, her eyes sparkling happily. Sirius grinned, and Adelaide quickly repositioned his hands. There was a heartbeat of silence, before she jumped, "Did you feel that?" she asked. He shook his head, and she moved his hands again. The game of cat and mouse continued for about ten minutes, before Sirius threw his hands up with an annoyed growl.

"My kid hates me!" he exclaimed. Adelaide giggled nervously.

"He just kicked where you used to be," she said in amusement. Sirius frowned, before growing determined and keeping his hands firmly placed on her stomach. She sighed and watched the ceiling, slightly bored of the fixed stare on her stomach when they could be doing something much more productive. They sat there for another minute and Adelaide had completely zoned out when Sirius let out a loud cry of success, causing her to jump out of her trance.

"I felt it!" he said. He placed his hands on her stomach again, and continued to stare in amazement. He grinned as he felt it again, and Adelaide groaned in annoyance.

"Sirius, I want you to stop staring at my stomach and start staring at other, more important aspects of my body!" she protested. He glanced up at her, before moving his attention back to her stomach. She whined pathetically and shifted under him.

"Sirius," she moaned, sounding like a whiny two-year old. There was another kick, and he grinned in success before kissing her. She prepared herself for something mind blowing, but was sorely disappointed as he pulled away and walked to their closet and began to get dressed. She watched him incredulously, "What the hell!?" she asked. He made his way to the door.

"Well, you did say that Remus needed me tonight," he said, clearly amused. She sputtered for a moment, pushing herself up onto her elbows.

"You never turn down sex!" she said, "Even when we spent the night and James and Lily's last week!" He just turned and smiled at her.

"But I lost track of time already," he explained, "I'll be late as it is."

"Then be a bit more late!" she whined, "Sirius! Don't do this too me! You know my libido has kicked in!" But he was already walking through the door.

"Bro's before hoe's!" he said with a laugh, before apparating with a pop. Adelaide stared at the door incredulously (she had been doing that a lot lately). She whined and pushed herself up fully, propping her head up on her hand.

"If that bastard values his life, he'll stay with James for the week," she growled under her breath. She hesitated for a moment, before glancing down at her hand with a dejected sigh, "So we're back to this. Hello, I don't think we've been acquainted in a while," she said sarcastically, before sighing. She heard another pop and glared at the door as Sirius walked through with a grin. He hesitated though at her menacing glare. He chuckled nervously.

"Haha?" he asked with a small smile, "It was a joke, Addie, you know that right?"

"You called me a hoe," she said blandly, glaring at him, "and left me for Remus after hours of asking to stay here with me. What. The. Fuck?" He pouted and crawled back onto the bed and brought his face close to hers, brushing his lips against hers.

"I'm sorry," he murmured, "It was a joke. Haha, right?" She glared at him, and he kept pouting. She didn't waver. He pressed closer causing her to fall backwards onto the bed and began trailing kisses down her neck, "You'll forgive me, right?" he asked. Her resolve wavered and she sighed in defeat. He grinned before allowing his hands to wander, and since she was so kind hearted (As she said) she decided to put aside their differences at the time and let him ravish her.

_But he'll pay for it in the morning, after he comes back from Remus',_ she thought with a silent laugh, _Oh, he'll pay._

When her birthday approached in May, she wanted nothing big and just simply have her friends at her house with minimal presents and a big, marble cake with butter cream frosting. To her, the cake was without a doubt the most important part. She ended up getting her wish (with the added bonus of strawberries on her cake as well) and her friends left around eight after they all got to feel the baby kick at least once (In Lily's case, ten times). The rest of the night was spent with only Sirius, locked up in their bedroom.

As her second trimester came to a close at the end of June, Adelaide was immensely relieved when she didn't have to make such frequent trips to the loo. Unfortunately, it was replaced with somewhat constant nosebleeds. The one thing that benefited both Sirius and Adelaide was her libido, which was normally fairly active, and now was taking up most of her thoughts.

"Sirius," Adelaide whispered softly, her breath tickling his ear, "you need to get up. It's noon." Sirius just groaned slightly and cracked open an eye to look at her.

"I'm tired," he whined, "we were up all night, if I remember correctly."

"So? Get Nobby to fix us something to eat," she offered with a shrug, "He's walked in on us enough to not care that we're completely bare under the sheets."

"Just because you get louder as time goes on," he began. She hit him lightly.

"I blame him, because he thinks that every sound I make means I'm in pain, even if that is definitely not the situation!" He chuckled before setting up and trailing soft kisses along her neck.

"Even you have to admit that you're loud," he murmured, "You were loud before you were pregnant, why should now be any different?" She sighed as he trailed his kisses down to her stomach, before tracing his fingertips over the faint stretch marks on her hips. She frowned.

"I was hoping that I wouldn't get stretch marks," she said dejectedly. Sirius looked up at her and continued to trace over the marks.

"I think you're beautiful," he murmured, "I always have." She snorted.

"Yeah right," she murmured, "I'm a fat ass."

"No you're not," he protested, raising himself so he was eye level with her, "I think that you are by far the best looking women on the planet and that any man would be lucky to have you. I love every part of you, and you are most definitely not fat. You are carrying my child, and nothing can make you more appealing then that."

"Except for that red dress I wore when you proposed," she said with a soft smile. He laughed and agreed.

"Yes, except for that dress," he agreed. She sighed, content, and he continued to run his hands over her, "Should we wait for breakfast, or should we risk being interrupted by a nosey house elf?"

"I say we live on the edge," she said with a grin. He chuckled and ran his hand along her thigh, his mouth moving back to hers. She moaned, and a sharp crack interrupted them.

"Nobby wanted to – EEK!!"

"Nobby!!!" Sirius groaned, pressing hie forehead against Adelaide's shoulder, while Adelaide stared blankly up at the ceiling.

"Nobby is so sorry!! Nobby just wanted to tell you Master Remus flooed. Nobby will leave right away!" There was another pop, and the two were left in silence. Adelaide sighed.

"He tends to ruin many good moments," she said dejectedly," I mean, after that little speech of yours I was positive that we were going to have mind blowing sex. It would have been like a fairy tale." Sirius snorted.

"I don't know what fairy tales you've been reading, but I'm most positive none of them involve mind blowing sex," he said. She shrugged with a coy grin.

"We should write a fairy tale then: tons of mind blowing sex."

"What, would that be the title?" he joked. She snorted, before kissing his cheek.

"Go find out what Remus wanted," she ordered, "I'll wait right here for you to return with news. If you don't have to leave, you can ravish me. If you do, you can ravish me and then leave. Does that sound like a plan?" He winked.

"Definitely."

To make a long story short, Sirius was able to stay and Adelaide was able to give him several ideas for that fairy tale idea.

The third trimester started in July, and both Adelaide and Sirius had done enough research to become completely enthralled with what was going on in her stomach. Now he could hear what was going on, even if it was muffled, and he could see whenever there was light so he was already getting accustomed to their sleep schedule. Sirius ended up spending his time talking to her stomach, which she found completely adorable and absolutely ridiculous at the same time. It didn't help that their friends all visited more often, which resulted in more cooing at her stomach.

"Hey baby," Lily cooed with a smile, while Adelaide met James' eyes and rolled her eyes, causing him to smile in amusement. Lily didn't notice the exchange, "I'm your Auntie Lily, and you're going to love me the most!" Adelaide snorted, but was overall ignored by her red headed friend.

"Lily, I think she's taken all she can of your baby talk," Sirius said from across the room. Lily just stuck her tongue out at him before standing with a sigh.

"We have to leave anyway," Lily said with a frown, "James' parents are still in St. Mungo's, and they don't seem to be getting any better." Sirius gently patted James' back while Adelaide gave them a soft smile.

"What is meant to be will be," she said softly. Lily's eyes glistened, while James, moved to stare out the window. Lily hugged her friend tightly, before hugging Sirius and grabbing James' hand.

"I'll see you again soon," Lily said with a smile, "I'm sure that baby will miss me and kick the living daylights out of you until I visit again in a week."

"I count on it," Adelaide said dryly, mostly because Lily was right and every time no one was talking to him he would kick her. Luckily, you didn't actually have to talk directly to him. As long as someone was talking he was happy.

July passed, and it was to Adelaide and Sirius' relief that Adelaide graduated early, as expected, in the top of her class. It made their life that much easier now that they didn't have to worry about her grades, which had always been very important to her. That and she knew more about what was going on then several people did, so she was like a walking encyclopedia for the next two months.

"Sirius, I'm tired," Adelaide murmured into his shoulder as they stood in the kitchen, "do you think you can carry me to bed?" She was joking, so she was surprised as he picked her up. He took a step, and she stiffened in his arms.

"What?" he asked. She swallowed.

"I think my water just broke."

-

"Take a deep breath, and push," the doctor instructed for the (what seemed to be) fiftieth time. Adelaide grunted, her face pink, and did as instructed, biting down harshly on her bottom lip. She tightened her grip on Sirius' hand, and gasped out as she felt her strain lift, and the doctor smiled from behind his mask as he pulled out the newborn. Sirius tightened his grip on her hand for a moment, and while they cleaned up their child, he gently kissed her forehead and she smiled up at him.

"I love you," she murmured, "Even if it's you're fault I had to go through that." Sirius laughed good-naturedly, and gently kissed her again.

"I love you too," he returned with a smile, and the doctor came over and placed the newborn into Adelaide's arms carefully.

"Congratulations, it's a girl," he said with a kind smile, and Sirius felt his heart swell up. She had wisps of black hair, her fathers nose, and her mothers eyes and lips. She was perfect. The doctor coughed softly, before speaking again, "what would you like to name her?"

"Aludra Hope Black," he responded, watching his wife with adoration. They had decided on the name last week, if it were a girl (Adelaide had wanted it to be a surprise) it was going to be Aludra Hope. Aludra was a star in the Canis Major constellation, the same as Sirius, and meant maidenhead, or purity. Hope came from everyone's hope that The Dark Lord would be defeated, and that she would grow up in a peaceful world.

"A beautiful name," a nurse said from Adelaide's other side, a smile on her face. The new parents smiled kindly at her, before Adelaide passed Aludra over to him. Sirius took her shakily, holding her close, and smiled down at her with pure adoration. Adelaide kept her sleepy eyes glued to the two as the door opened and James, Lily, and Remus stepped inside.

"Boy or girl!?" Lily asked immediately. Adelaide laughed softly.

"Girl. Her name's Aludra Hope," Lily sighed and quickly hugged her friend.

"Ew, you're all sweaty," she joked. Adelaide rolled her eyes.

"I feel so freaking tired," Adelaide groaned, "Twelve hours! I feel as if my head is going to explode!"

"And here we thought the baby would be early," Remus said with a smile, "She's right on time."

"We've been thinking about it," Sirius said slowly, glancing at Adelaide, who nodded, "We want to name James and Lily the godparents." Lily gasped and tears sprung to her eyes, while James smiled.

"We'd love to be her godparents," Lily said happily, before rushing over and hugging Adelaide tightly and James patted Sirius on the back.

"Congratulations, mate," he said and Sirius smiled appreciatively as a warm bubble began to fill his chest, "How does it feel?" Sirius didn't even hesitate as he answered, staring down at his daughter with awe.

"Like I'm the luckiest man in the whole world,"

-

**Disclaimer: **Harry Potter and all things concerning belong to J.K. Rowling. I own Adelaide Vicknair, Vanessa Wolfe, Caryn Gree, Elise Barnes, Madeline Vicknair, Annalisa Bertucci, Professor Sicily and Jean Vicknair.

**A/N:** I didn't come up with how Adelaide broke the news on my own; I was googling pregnancies (I was paranoid my parents would walk by and think I'm pregnant) and it came up with a list of what other people did to announce their pregnancies, and that idea stuck with me b/c of the Wizarding pictures would move, and show their expressions.

This might have been the longest chapter yet; originally it was going to be even longer, but it would have been ridiculous!! So, how did I do? I've never written something like that before either. I learned a lot though. :D

I also have another SiriusOC idea (that I find farely unique) and I'll probably post it after I finish this, to give myself something new to work on and to give me time to work on Edelweiss, which has been completely revamped. It was a lot of work, but I think it'll turn out OK. Here's the summary:

_Sirius Black__ didn't expect to find the woman of his dreams in a local supermarket, dressed as a muggle, and six months pregnant. Life is just full of surprises._

I've finaly come out of my little slump, so expect more chapters. :D

Yours truly,  
B.E.N.


	26. Splattered

**Wallflower**

**Chapter Twenty-Six: **Splattered

Adelaide first took Aludra out when she was three months old, when she and Lily decided to go down to Diagon Alley to have girl time. Sirius wanted them to stay home, or at least allow him to come, but his answer was a bedroom door slamming in his face.

"He's so obsessive," Adelaide murmured to Aludra, who giggled happily and waved her hand in front of her face. Adelaide giggled and made a face, causing Aludra to laugh again, when there was a knock on the door. Adelaide easily supported Aludra with one arm to open the door and smiled at Lily, who was beaming happily. The hugged quickly, before Lily began to coo at Aludra, much like she had done while Adelaide was pregnant.

"Hey pretty baby," she cooed, "It's your Auntie Lily!"

"Gah!" was Aludra's response as she reached out and tugged on a strand of Lily's hair. Lily didn't seem to mind, though, and she cooed, her eyes gleaming happily.

"How are we going to get to Diagon Alley?" Adelaide asked, regaining her friends attention. Lily quickly untangled her hair, to Aludra's annoyance, and shrugged.

"I think we might need to take the muggle way," she said, "I don't know how Aludra will react to floo or apparition." Adelaide tilted her head.

"What's the muggle way?" she asked. Lily smiled.

"Well, there's the buses, we can take one down to the Leaky Cauldron, and we can get to Diagon Alley from there," Lily explained. Adelaide raised her eyebrows, and took in Lily's appearance. She was smiling, and she looked like she was hiding something.

"You're pregnant," she said blandly, and Lily chocked slightly, blushing.

"How did you know!?" she asked. Adelaide smiled.

"I looked like you when I found out," she said simply, "how far along are you?" Lily blushed, and her smile grew.

"Seven weeks; I was planning on surprising James today." Adelaide laughed and shook her head in amusement.

"He's going to have a heart attack," she murmured, before smiling at Lily again, "So, how do we get to the bus?"

The trip down to Diagon Alley was interesting to say the least. Adelaide was forced to sit near the back of the bus with a woman who looked like she hadn't taken a bath in weeks, and kept cooing at Aludra, who watched everything with wide eyes. When they finally made it to the Leaky Cauldron, Lily and Adelaide were both relieved and made quick work of getting through the archway. It took barely a moment before Lily found a small Christmas ornament that said 'Baby's First Christmas'. All their Christmas decorations were on sale now that Christmas was in the past, and Lily bought it without a second glance.

"Well, that's a way to tell James," Adelaide said with a roll of her eyes as she adjusted Aludra slightly, "Are you going to find out the sex of the baby, or let it be a surprise?"

"I don't really know," Lily said truthfully, "I hated waiting to find out what Aludra was going to be, so I odn't think I want anyone to have to go through that again," Lily eyed Adelaide in a playful glare, and Adelaide laughed loudly.

"True, very true," Adelaide said with a nod of her head, "I know for a fact that the next kid I have, I'm going to find out as soon as I can; I already got to bug you all about it once." Lily laughed before turning and entering Magical Menagerie where the scent of animals assaulted their noses. A small kitten (most likely a Kneazle) looked up upon their arrival, meowed, before lowering it's head in boredom.

"I want to get a pet, but I don't know if I should," Lily said idly, looking over all the different animals, "maybe a dog."

"Well, I can tell you what's cheaper," Adelaide said with a smile, "Get Padfoot to come over; I'll let you borrow him." Lily snorted and shook her head in amusement.

"You have a point," she said, "But I think that Padfoot should stick to entertaining Ally." It took only that to get Lily to turn and begin cooing happily at Aludra, who giggled and reached out to tug on Lily's hair. Adelaide rolled her eyes before nodding towards the door.

"Come on, if you decide that getting a pet is imperative, then we can come back and pick one out, that way we don't lug it all around Diagon Alley," Adelaide offered. Lily nodde,d and they left the store, both enjoying the fresh air as opposed to the scent of poisonous toads.

"I think I want some Ice Cream," Adelaide said suddenly, smiling over at Lily, "How about you?"

"Florean really does have some of the best," Lily said with a nod. Florean Fortescue's Ice Cream Parlor was near by and they were greeted with large smiles from Florean. Lily ended up getting a chocolate peanut butter mix, while Adelaide got a birthday cake flavored ice cream. Aludra made several grabs for it, and Adelaide finally consented and placed some ice cream on her finger and sticking it in Aldura's mouth.

After that, Aludra kept grabbing for the cone, and Adelaide kept moving it away. Lily snorted.

"Looks like she got Sirius' appetite," Lily said with a smile. Adelaide sighed.

"Lets hope she gets his metabolism as well," she agreed, "I swear, that man goes through more food then me and you combined!" Lily laughed, shaking her head, before glancing across the street.

"Do you think we need new robes?" she asked, "We haven't gotten any in a while."

"I'm the same size I've always been," Adelaide said with a shrug, "Just a bit bigger now, but nothing too noticeable. Besides, I always bought my clothes a size big." Lily rolled her eyes.

"You're so money conscious," Lily said with a playful sigh, "You've got more then enough to feed all of the UK!"

"Now that's a lie," Adelaide said with a chuckle, "Only enough to feed London." Lily started laughing at her, before finishing off her cone.

"Well, do you want to wonder around and see if anything catches our eyes, or do you have a specific destination in mind?" Adelaide shrugged slightly, watching Aludra with a small smile as she began to doze off.

"We can wonder," she said softly. Lily smiled before scooting her chair back, Adelaide following her example, and they left the parlor, "how about we stop by Flourish and Blotts? I hear they got a new book in recently…"

Lilt ended up leading Adelaide through the streets, occasionally stopping in a store and simply wandering. Mostly they walked and talked, catching up on the things that they missed, and simply enjoying each others company.

Adelaide returned home with only a small bag, and was greeted with a firm kiss on her mouth that sent chills down her spine. She sighed, and a soft cry alerted her that Aludra was still in her arms. They pulled away from each other and Adelaide smiled happily at him.

"I missed you too," she said playfully. Sirius laughed and kissed her forehead, before taking Aludra out of Adelaide's arm with a smile.

"Hey, Ally!" He cooed happily. Aludra giggled, droll slipping down her chin, and reached for his hair. He grinned before walking off to the kitchen to give her a bottle. Adelaide rolled her eyes before going up stairs to put away her purchases.

"…has him wrapped around her finger," she murmured.

-

Adelaide was having a really wonderful dream. She couldn't really give it any pictures, or description, but a sense of complete joy continued to fill her even though she had no idea what was going on. She began to fade from her dream as soft fingers moved across her skin and sent shivers down her spine. She sighed, but kept her eyes closed in an attempt to keep that perfect bliss.

"Adelaide, you need to wake up," Sirius' voice floated into her mind. She pouted and shook her head. She heard him sigh, slightly impatiently, "Adelaide, seriously, James just flooed. Lily's gone in to labor."

And all traces of her dream disappeared as she shot up in her bed with wide eyes.

"What?" she asked. Sirius raised his eyebrows.

"I said-."

"No, no, I heard you," Adelaide said quickly, waving him off, "It was more of an 'oh Merlin, are you serious?' what then a 'can you repeat that?' what," She explained, before rolling out of bed, "I'm going to get dress, and we'll leave immediately." Sirius raised his eyebrows as she darted to the wardrobe, before shaking his head.

"I'll go get Aludra," he said. She only murmured a reply as she pulled on her shirt. He sighed and entered the pink bedroom that Adelaide had denied when she first moved in, and gently picked her up. She whined slightly, but remained asleep. She had grown a lot in seven months, and she was starting to speak. Just two weeks ago she had said 'dada' when he got home from auror training.

"Are you ready?" Adelaide asked anxiously, and Sirius turned to see her dressed in one of his tee shirts and a loose pair of jeans. Sirius raised his eyebrows.

"Are you sure that's what you want to wear?" he asked. Adelaide rolled her eyes.

"Do I really care what I'm wearing?" she asked, "I just want to get to St. Mungos!" Sirius rolled his eyes, and before he could say anything she had apparated. He sighed.

"Guess that means Ally's going to experience apparating," he murmured, bracing himself before turning. The tube like sensation was very brief, and he saw Adelaide talking to the nurse, who seemed to know her. He quickly comforted a whimpering Aludra, when Adelaide noticed him.

"Oh, Ms. Fennic, this is my husband Sirius," Adelaide introduced briefly. The nurse smiled; she appeared to be in her late forties.

"I've heard a lot about you," she said politely, before returning her attention to Adelaide, "I'll take you to Ms. Potters room."

"Thank you so much!" Adelaide said breathlessly. They began walking in the opposite direction swiftly, slightly surprising Sirius, who quickly caught up with them while managing not to jostle Aludra too much. The room came up quickly, and Remus was setting near the door with a nervous looking Peter at his side. Remus smiled as they appeared, and Sirius returned it before Adelaide began talking quickly.

"Can I see her?" Adelaide asked quickly. Remus nodded, but couldn't get a word in as Adelaide burst into the room, leaving the three men to raise their eyebrows and share glances. Suddenly James came out, his hair array and still in his pajamas, and looked at them with a panicked expression.

"Lily kicked me out," he said, "Said I was making her nervous." Sirius smirked.

"You were pacing, weren't you?" he asked simply. James blushed and glanced away.

"Maybe," he murmured. Remus laughed quietly.

"It's so odd seeing you look so frazzled," he said with a wry smile, "Everything is going to be okay." James grunted before taking a seat beside Remus and staring intently at the door. Sirius raised an eyebrow and decided to take a seat, and Peter, after noticing he was the only one standing, took a seat quickly and clumsily.

"I haven't seen you around lately," Sirius said, "what've you been doing?"

"Oh…stuff," Peter said lamely with a shrug. Sirius raised an eyebrow, but didn't question him further. Remus and James shared a look, but otherwise continued to watch the door. Ten minutes later, Adelaide stuck her head out of the room.

"You might want to get in here, James," she said, "Lily's about to kill me."

"Well, that's comforting," James murmured. Adelaide smiled apologetically and stepped out of the room, moving to take James' seat. Peter stood quickly.

"I'm going to go get some fruit, do you guys want some fruit?" he said quickly. They all shook their heads and watched him leave with confused expressions.

"What's up with Wormtail?" Remus asked with worry, "I've never seen him so jumpy."

The note flashed through Adelaide's head, and she bit down on her lip before pushing it away: now was not the time.

They waited for what had to be two hours before James finally left the room with the largest smile on his face. Adelaide felt relief flow through her and she returned the smile. James looked around and his eyebrows furrowed.

"Where's Peter?"

It was then everyone realized that Peter had never returned from his quest for fruit. Adelaide furrowed her eyebrows slightly in confusion, and James face fell as he realized that his friend had left without a word. Sirius frowned, and glanced down at Aludra who was looking at him with wide eyes, and gurgling nonsensically. James sighed, but the smile returned quickly.

"It's a boy," he said with a breath of relief, "We named him Harry James Potter." Adelaide 'aw'ed softly, while Sirius stood and gave James a pat on the back, followed by Remus who congratulated him with a large smile.

"Can we see him?" Remus asked. James nodded.

"Of course!" he said happily, still smiling. Sirius shook his head, but knew exactly what it was like. They made their way into the room, and Lily smiled tiredly at them with a small blue bundle in her arms.

"You must be so tired," Adelaide said as she hurried over and gave Lily a one armed hug. Lily just nodded with a yawn, but her face was glowing. James and Lily shared a look, before looking at Sirius.

"We thought it over-" James began, before being cut off by Lily.

"We want you to be his godfather," Lily finished. Sirius' eyes widened, before he nodded.

"O-of course!" he said, stumbling slightly. Adelaide took Aludra from him and Sirius hugged James with a slightly dazed expression. James laughed while Remus smiled at both of them. Lily glanced over at the two of them and winked, before returning her attention back to Harry. He had wisps of black hair, and his eyes were a brilliant green, the exact color and shape of his mothers. Lily smiled softly and brushed some of his hair away, and cooed softly to him. Adelaide felt her heart clench slightly, before she glanced over at Sirius, who was watching her intently. He grinned and winked at her. Adelaide blushed and returned her attention to Aludra, who was looking at Harry intently. Then, she stuck her tongue out at him, before turning to Adelaide and whining in attempt to regain her attention. Adelaide giggled before kissing Aludra on the cheek, to her satisfaction.

"I hope they get along," Lily said with a small smile. Adelaide returned the gesture.

"I don't see why they wouldn't,"

-

Two months later was Aludra's first birthday party. It was a very small event, with only Remus, James, Lily, and Harry being invited. Adelaide had extended the invite to Peter out of courtesy (he was Sirius' friend, after all), but she was turned down rather harshly, causing a whole new rift to forge between Sirius and Peter. Peter had insulted Aludra, and unfortunately, Sirius had walked in at the wrong time and personally threatened Peter.

"You want the doggy?" Adelaide asked Aludra, who was reaching for a small stuffed black dog from her spot in Adelaide's lap. The dog was from Remus as an early birthday present two weeks previous. Aludra gave Adelaide a 'no duh' look, and Adelaide sighed.

For only one year old, Aludra had a lot of spunk. Adelaide frequently blamed Sirius for that, though he often claimed that he 'had no idea what she was talking about'. Adelaide raised an eyebrow at Aludra, who whimpered and continued reaching for the dog.

"Pease?" she whimpered. It was barely understandable, but it was one of the few words that she knew how to say. The list currently included, 'Please (Pease), Mum (mama), Dad (dada), Thank You ('ank ooh), No (oh), Remus (Rem), Harry ('Arry), James ('Ames), Lily (Lee) and to Adelaide's chagrin, Idiot (eedut). Again, she blamed Sirius.

Adelaide smiled at Aludra and handed her the dog. Aludra thanked her half heartedly, and proceeded to beat the dog against the floor. Sirius winced from the couch.

"I can feel the love," he murmured, shaking his head. Adelaide giggled, when there was a loud pop (that caused Aludra to jump) and Remus appeared with a smile and two wrapped presents under his arms.

"I'm a bit early," he said bashfully, "but I got impatient." He was noticeably haggard. Adelaide frowned.

"Are you sure you're okay?" she asked in a maternal fashion. Remus smiled and nodded.

"I have two days," he said, "I think I can handle a birthday party." Adelaide bit her lip but nodded, before Remus placed the presents on the couch and leaned down to see Aludra better. Her face lit up.

"Rem!" she squealed, before showing him her dog with a proud smile, "Grr!" He smiled, and then he growled playfully at her. She shrieked out a giggle, before hitting him with the dog. Adelaide caught her wrist with a reprimanding frown, but Remus just laughed.

"It's okay," he said with a smile. He straightened before taking a seat on the couch beside Sirius, who was watching in amusement.

"You may not mind, but I don't think she should get into the habbit of hitting people with stuffed animals," Adelaide said, shooting a look towards Sirius. He just laughed.

"That's just her way of getting revenge for when Remus fed her a lemon," he said with a shrug. Adelaide bristled slightly.

"I don't want her to hit people!" she reasoned, but relaxed with a smile, "It was really funny, though."

"What was funny?" James asked as he stepped through the door with Harry balanced on his hip while Lily followed with three presents under her arms.

"Ally hit Remus with the stuffed dog he gave her," Sirius explained with a grin. James laughed, catching Aludra's attention.

"Amy!" she called excitedly, clapping her hands together. Unfortunately, she had heard Sirius jokingly call James Jamie, and since she couldn't actually get out 'James', she had started calling him 'Amy'. Then she spotted Harry, and her smile fell and she narrowed her eyes. He didn't notice, though, and continued to look around with wide eyes. Adelaide and Sirius both glanced at each other, and watched Aludra carefully.

Aludra had a record of not liking Harry too much; just last month, she had tried to bite him. It had started innocently, with Aludra walking around on wobbly legs and heading towards Harry. Adelaide started cooing when Harry reached out to her, but the moment was ruined when Aludra chomped down on his finger, sending Harry into a torrent of tears.

"Hey, Ally!" Lily said with a large smile. Aludra snapped her attention over to Lily, and smiled again.

"Lee!" Aludra squealed happily. She attempted to stand, but couldn't seem to pull herself up. Adelaide chuckled before giving her a hand and standing her up. Aludra wobbled for a bit, before waddling over to Lily with a bright smile. Lily smiled, sat the presents down on the floor, before scooping Aludra up into her arms.

"Happy birthday, Ally!" she cooed. Aludra giggled and Lily kissed her nose, causing Aludra to duck her head and burry it in to her shoulder.

"Lee!" she whined bashfully. Lily gently sat her back onto the floor and picked up the presents again.

"Where do we sit the presents?" She asked. Adelaide shrugged.

"Just set them on the couch," she ordered, "I know this is called a party, but we're the only ones here, so it's not all planned out." Lily shrugged and placed the presents on the couch with Remus' while Sirius sighed and stood.

"Might as well get her presents and put them on the couch," he said with a grin. He moved into the kitchen and grabbed their two presents off of the kitchen table and placed them on the couch, before taking a seat on the floor beside Adelaide. Aludra saw the new lap, and hurried over, stumbling midway, before collapsing into his lap with a grin.

"Hi da!" she said happily.

"Hey, baby girl!" he returned. She giggled before yanking on his hair and hugging him around his neck tightly. Adelaide smiled widely, before turning and looking at Lily.

"Do I have to get up to see Harry?" she asked with a playful smile. Lily just smiled, and James handed Adelaide Harry, who looked at Adelaide with wide eyes, and a somewhat surprised expression that said 'whoa, you're not my dad!' Adelaide wiggled her eyebrows, and Harry laughed, reaching out a hand to pat her forehead. Lily smiled.

"So, do we get to enjoy the cake, or do we have to fend for ourselves?" James asked suddenly, "Because your cake sounds really good about now."

"It's in the fridge," Adelaide said, pushing herself up and handing Harry to Remus, who smiled at him and again caused Harry to give him the 'you're not my dad either!' expression. She brushed imaginary dirt off of her skirt before moving into the kitchen and waving her wand. She watched as the door opened and a simple vanilla cake with chocolate frosting floated out on a white platter. There were slices of strawberry on top and a single candle, but otherwise it was nothing special. She placed it on the table, and smiled proudly.

"That was relatively painless," she said with pride, before turning and looking at them with an arched eyebrow, "I don't know, should we open presents first, or eat cake. I didn't bother with any actual food."

"I think cake counts as actual food," James said with a grin. Lily rolled her eyes.

"That's because you're a pig," she said in a faux-kind voice. James rolled his eyes and ignored the jab.

"Personally I think we should have cake first," he said. Adelaide frowned as she realized something.

"But I don't want her to get cake all over her outfit before we take pictures," Adelaide realized with a soft hum of contemplation. She waved her hand suddenly, "Never mind, forget I asked, we're opening presents first." James sighed and took a seat with Lily on the love seat, and Remus took on the role of handing Aludra her presents.

"I think she should open mine first," he said with a grin, "seeing as how I'm in charge of the presents." Adelaide rolled her eyes but motioned with her hand to get on with it. Remus chuckled before pulling his present out of the pile and scooting it over to Sirius, who got Aludra's attention. She turned with wide eyes, before spotting the present and grinning madly.

"Pesent!" she cooed, reaching foreword and tugging the gift towards her. She struggled with the paper, and looked at Sirius with a pitiful expression. He chuckled and tore open one of the sides, and she pushed his hand away as soon as she thought she could do the rest, with a large smile.

Aludra was very satisfied with all her gifts, but was disappointed when she opened the last one and was close to tears, until Adelaide reminded her of the cake. Remus had gotten her a toy broomstick (to Sirius' joy and Adelaide's horror) and Quidditch Through the Ages, a simplified version of course, that Aludra seemed slightly confused about and ended up setting aside. James, Lily, and Harry got her a set of gobstones (Harry had been mesmerized by them in the store), a large stuffed deer, and a small unicorn figurine that moved around, and Aludra was completely enthralled with the model. Sirius and Adelaide had gotten her a tea set that served itself and a hippogriff figurine much like the unicorn. The funny thing was, was that the two figurines took a liking to each other and mostly just sat beside each other and watched what was going on.

"Can we have cake now?" James asked eagerly, and Adelaide laughed before nodding. James cheered softly and stood to run off into the kitchen.

"I swear, he still acts like a little kid," Lily said with a shake of her head as she took Harry from Remus, balancing him on her hip. Adelaide laughed before hooking her hands under Aludra's arms and standing, bringing Aludra close to her. They migrated to the kitchen, and James was practically vibrated from excitement. Adelaide snorted and shook her head.

After lighting the candle and singing happy birthday, and cut her a piece of cake. Adelaide had the camera ready, and Aludra looked at her fork with furrowed eyebrows. Adelaide snapped a picture as Aludra tossed it aside and simply grabbed a piece with her fingers and smeared it on her face in an attempt to get it into her mouth. Adelaide sighed.

"Of course," she murmured, "I was smart to open presents first." Then she snapped a picture, and Aludra smiled widely at her. Adelaide cooed while Lily began serving the cake, and she was the only one watching Aludra without faltering. It paid off.

As Sirius turned his back to get a napkin, Aludra got a devious expression. Adelaide moved to take another picture, and just as she pressed the button, Aludra launched a piece of cake at the back of his head. It landed with a splat, and the only sound was Aludra giggled as the cake slowly fell and splattered against the floor. Sirius turned slowly with wide eyes, and Adelaide snapped another picture while she grinned, attempting to keep in her smile.

James was the first to break, and he doubled with laughter, his face turning pink. That seemed to set off a chain reaction, and Remus was soon gripping the back of the chair to steady himself and Lily was covering her mouth as she laughed. Adelaide hurried foreword and began to pick the cake from his hair, unsuccessfully keeping in her laughter.

"I-I'm so sorry!" she said, though she didn't sound sorry at all, "Y-You're going…going to have to…to take a-a show-shower!" Sirius was still in shock, but slowly began to chuckle in embarrassment as he began to run his fingers through his hair, flecks of cake splattering against the floor.

"I think she's a marauder in the making!" Remus said, as he was the first to regain his composure, but was still smiling. Adelaide shook her head.

"I swear, she's just a female version of you," she said to Sirius, who kept chuckling. James straightened himself up with a sigh as he whipped at his eyes.

"You know that you're going to laugh about this later," he said, and Sirius sighed with a wry smile.

"I know, I know," he murmured, "I just wish that it had been Remus instead." Remus laughed, and patted Sirius on the back.

"I won't take that too personally," he said with a smile. Sirius laughed, and Lily finally got her laughter under control.

"That was awesome," she sighed, shifting Harry to her other hip. She moved around to Aludra and picked the fork off of the floor. Harry reached out towards Aludra's piece of cake in curiosity, and Aludra's eyes gleaming was the only warning as she leaned foreword and bit down on his finger.

Lily cursed under her breath as Harry began to wail in agony, and Adelaide groaned.

"Again?" she asked, and Lily nodded as she inspected Harry's finger with a frown. Adelaide turned to Aludra and gently smacked her hand, enough to make Aludra's eyes water.

"You do not bite," she scolded firmly. Aludra looked at her with large, doe eyes, and pouted. Adelaide just raised an eyebrow, causing Aludra to deflate and look down at her plate. Adelaide straightened, and looked at everyone with a sigh.

"And here I hoped that they would get along," she said with a frown. Lily shook her head, and Harry finally quieted, though he buried his face into Lily's neck and whimpered.

"They're still young, I'm sure they'll get along better when they're older,"

-

**A/N:** Oh yeah, I'm G. Fo Shizzle.

…if I ever do that again, feel free to shoot me.

BUT YOU KNOW WHAT PISSED ME OFF???? On HP wikia, they say Sirius was born around 1959, and don't give you his exact birthday. So I based my plotline on them all being born in 1959. BS. They actually are born in 1960. I'M A YEAR OFF ON EVERYTHING!! GOD FUCKING DAMMIT!! I was so METICULOUS on EVERYTHING so I would get all the times right, and then this happens!!!!!

I am so pissed right now. Seriously. Again, this was going to be longer, but it was getting too long compared to the other chapters. So, two chapters left, followed by an epilogue that is probably too long to call an epilogue. /this is the longest chapter (as it stands right now) at just over five thousand words. Yay!!

On a funny note, on my cruise our maid guy was named Hary. With one r. It was awesome. :D

AND, I wanted to (if they have a son) name him Jacob, but Twilight had to go and ruin it for me!! GODDAMMIT!!!

Yours truly,  
B.E.N.

P.S. Remember that there will be canon pairings!! Aludra and Harry WILL NOT be getting together! Just though I would clear that up.


	27. Prophecy

**Wallflower**

**Chapter Twenty-Seven: **Prophecy

"Are you concentrating?"

"Yes."

"Are you sure?"

"I'm sure."

"Ok. You need to keep focusing. Don't let your attention wander."

"Right…Sirius, it's kind of hard to concentrate with your hand down my pants."

"Really? Well, it can't be too hard."

"Unless you want me to fail again, I suggest you get your hands as far away from me as possible." Sirius sighed but listened and moved away, while Adelaide continued to focus on her magic. She could feel the shimmer of her magic bushing against her skin softly, sending chills down her spine. Sirius sat behind her and watched her closely. He sighed again as his attention began to wander, before he rolled off of the bed and began heading towards the door.

"Where are you going?" Adelaide asked quickly.

"Relax, I'm just going to check on Ally. She should be waking up soon, right?"

"Oh. Okay. Crap, I need to start over now…" she sighed before closing her eyes, and refocusing on her magic. Sirius left quietly, shutting the door as quietly as he could, before making his way down the hallway and into Aludra's bedroom. He almost had a heart attack when he saw that she was standing up in her crib, and watching the door intently. She smiled when he appeared, and held out her hand clamping her fist closed repeatedly.

"Da!" she said happily. Sirius walked over and lifted her into his arms.

"How long have you been awake?" he asked, and as he expected, he just got a look that said 'what the heck did you just say?' He laughed to himself before making his way downstairs and into the living room, where Aludra began to twist in his arms and whine as she reached toward her stuffed dog that sat precariously on the edge of the mantle. He grabbed the dog as he passed and handed it to her, causing her to babble in excitement and hug the dog close to her chest.

"Deh!" she babbled, looking at Sirius expectantly. He raised his eyebrows.

"You mean Dog?"

"Deh?"

"Right, deh."

When Adelaide screamed from upstairs, Sirius about had a heart attack. He hurried to the stairs where Adelaide came running down with the largest smile on her face. Sirius blinked in confusion, before she hugged him, causing Aludra to whine slightly. She pulled away before kissing him, smile still in place.

"I did it!" she said excitedly, bouncing on the balls of her feet, "I'm an animagus!" Sirius' smiled and hugged her close with his free arm and kissed the top of her head.

"That's brilliant!" he said excitedly, "What's your form?" Adelaide giggled.

"I'm a cat," she said, giggling to herself, "A large white cat." Sirius raised both his eyebrows and wrinkled his nose.

"Ew," he said simply. Adelaide giggled again, before kissing him. Aludra cried out in annoyance, and Adelaide pulled away.

"I'm sorry, were we ignoring you?" she asked, and Aludra giggled before tugging on Sirius' hair. He winced and attempted to untangle her fingers, but it didn't seem to do any good.

"You know, you need to stop screaming all the time," Sirius remarked as he continued trying to untangle her fingers, "You screamed when you passed your N.E.W.T.s, when I proposed, when we have sex-" at this she promptly blushed and smacked him in the chest, "when you got accepted into SMU, when I started auror training, when you graduated from SMU, when you told us you were pregnant, when you gave birth-"

"What did you expect me to do!?"

"And then when Aludra said her first word, when she took her first steps-."

"Okay, Okay, I got it!" Adelaide said, her eyebrow twitching slightly, "I'm a screamer, I get it." Sirius snickered, and her eyes widened before she smacked him on the chest again, "Not like that, you pervert!"

"But it is true-"

"You aren't allowed to talk anymore!" Adelaide interrupted, fighting back a smile, "I'm heading to the ministry to register."

"Goody two shoes," he quipped.

"I obey the rules, Sirius!" she said with a small smile, "You know, those things made so we don't get into trouble?"

"Trouble is my middle name." Sirius said proudly, puffing out his chest. Adelaide rolled her eyes.

"I'll be back soon," she said, "It shouldn't take too long." He barely opened his mouth to reply when she turned and apparated, causing Aludra to jump in surprise and let go of his hair. Sirius sighed and gently rubbed his scalp.

"Thank god."

When Christmas arrived barely three months afterwards, Adelaide had gotten her first job at St. Mungo's in the children's ward, as she had hoped. Christmas itself was quiet with only the three celebrating together with a cake (once requested by Sirius) and hot chocolate.

"I love your food, I've told you that, right?" Sirius asked before taking a large bite of cake. Adelaide just rolled her eyes.

"Multipul times," she commented dryly, adjusting Aludra on her lap. Aludra babbled softly, before pointing at the tree.

"Pesent!" she demanded. Adelaide shook her head.

"Be patient," she said softly. Aludra frowned angrily.

"Pesent now!" she cried.

"No, be patient," Adelaide repeated. Aludra cried out in annoyance, and before Adelaide really realized what happened, one of the boxes under the tree zoomed out and almost hit her in the head. She managed to duck at the last second and the present crashed into a grandfather clock, shattering the glass. Sirius looked over at the clock with wide eyes, fork hanging out of his mouth, before looking at Adelaide, who looked like she had been slapped.

"She tried to hit me with a box!" she said, her eyes watering, "My kid hates me!"

"Déjà vu," Sirius murmured under his breath, before quickly continuing, "She doesn't hate you, it was on accident, and she loves you very much." Adelaide glared slightly at him, before waving her wand and repairing the glass and sending the present back to its original spot. Aludra looked at Adelaide with horrified eyes.

"Sowwy mama," she cooed, patting Adelaide's cheek gently. Adelaide relaxed and smiled softly. Sirius rolled his eyes and continued to eat his cake.

-

Adelaide was very silent as she sat beside Lily, who was bent over with her head between her knees as she attempted to steady her breathing. James was pacing in front of them with a frown, while Sirius and Remus stood awkwardly out to the side, since every attempt to approach James resulted in him shooing them away as he still tried to process the information.

"I'm sorry that I had to be the one to tell you this," Dumbledore said from his spot near the fireplace. His face was as grave as the news he was telling.

"So, are you saying," Lily said softly, her voice muffled against her knees, "That my _son,_ a ten month old baby, has a prophecy made about him? A prophecy that marks him as the one who can defeat Voldemort?"

"I'm afraid so," Dumbledore said, nodding grimly. Adelaide was silent as she rubbed Lily's back. She held back the lump growing in her throat as she watched her friends body shake violently and listening as her breath hitched.

"We won't let anyone get him," James said angrily as he continued to pace, "_No one _will touch a single hair on Harry's head." Adelaide was only slightly amused by the pun, but she still felt as if she had been pushed under a ton of water that kept getting into her lungs and suffocating her, and just as she would get a breath, the water would return and drown her again. She could only imagine how Lily was feeling.

"We can only do so much," Dumbledore explained, "We need to do what we can to protect him."

"What about little Neville?" Adelaide asked suddenly, "He was born July 30. Have you talked to them yet?"

"I have already visited them," Dumbledore replied, "They have planned to move to another location and protect the house with multiple charms. I suggest you prepare another house, unknown by anyone but yourselves, and move under complete secrecy." James ran his hands through his hair, tugging at it angrily.

"How the hell are we going to find a place on such short notice?" he asked, "Who the hell can we trust?"

"That is up to you," Dumbledore said with a sad smile, "Though from what I have observed in the years I have known you, I can safely say that all that are present are trustworthy." From beside the door, the nearly invisible Peter shifted his weight to his other leg, but otherwise his face remained completely neutral. Dumbledore scanned the room quickly, before nodding.

"I am afraid that I must leave you," he said, nodding his head, "I will be in touch." He stepped back into the fireplace and disappeared, none of them actually hearing where he went. Lily finally straightened up with tears running down her face and she leaned back into the seat of the couch before running her fingers through her hair.

"What are we going to do?" she whispered.

"It'll be okay," Adelaide whispered softly, "We won't let anything happen to Harry."

"What about Neville?" Peter piped up from the door. Adelaide looked at him in confusion.

"What are you talking about?" she asked, "If they need out help, then of course we'll help."

"I'm just saying…never mind." He cut himself off. Adelaide's eyes narrowed.

"What?" she asked, her voice going down a level. Peter shrugged.

"It doesn't matter," he brushed her off. She clenched her jaw.

"No, I want to hear what you were going to say."

"It's just you were quick to push the prospect of Neville being 'the Chosen One'," he said with a shrug. Adelaide's head jerked to the side slightly.

"What are you implying?" she hissed out. Sirius opened his mouth to step in, but Peter was faster.

"Well, it sounded like you were throwing them out there, as if it wouldn't bother you as much if they were the ones who had to bear this," he explained. Adelaide stood up quickly, looking completely menacing for a split second.

"I would never force this on someone!" she hissed, "I was simply trying to find out if they had been warned, if they were going to be warned, if they would be protected!"

"It didn't sound that way," Peter retorted. Adelaide growled.

"Where have you been when they needed you?" she asked angrily, "For the past few years, you've kept disappearing whenever something important happened! You've known them for ten years, yet you haven't been here! I've known them for only three, yet I've been there through it all!"

"Adelaide, maybe you should calm down," Sirius said slowly, eyes flickering between the two of them, "We don't need any fights. Now isn't the time."

"Fuck you, Peter," Adelaide hissed. She straightened her back and glanced over at the others, "I'm going home. My anger isn't helping the situation." Sirius opened his mouth to protest, and she sent him a soft smile, and her anger faded slightly, "I need to take care of Aludra any way. I expect you to stay here, and help them." she turned quickly and headed upstairs, where Aludra was resting. Lily groaned and pressed her palms into her eyes.

"This is unreal," she said softly, "This can't be happening. This can't." James stopped pacing and moved over to her, taking her into his arms and hugging her tightly.

"We'll get through this," he murmured, "We'll get through this."

-

Harry's first birthday was supposed to be a happy occasion, but with the news of his possible fate still fresh in their minds, they simply put on happy faces for Harry and Aludra's sake. As muggle sayings go, they put on their happy hats and wore it like pros save for the small moments where the toddlers were both distracted, when they would share subtle glances and frowns.

"Aludra, those aren't your presents," Adelaide chastised patiently. Aludra grimaced and stuck her tongue out before moving away from the gift. Harry watched her in slight confusion, before Lily regained his attention by pushing his present towards him. He looked at it in confusion, before glancing back up at his mother with a 'what the heck is it?' expression. Lily smiled at him, and slowly pulled away at the wrapping. Understanding flashed through his face and he immediately began working on opening his present. Aludra sighed in aggravation, rolling her eyes.

"Calm down," Adelaide said, and Aludra frowned as she watched Harry struggle with the paper. Sirius chuckled and ruffled her hair affectionately. She whined slightly and batted at his hands, before gluing her eyes back to the still unopened present.

"Eedut," she grumbled. Adelaide frowned at her, while Sirius and James tried to hide their smiles.

When Harry went through all his presents and ate all his cake, Aludra had almost fallen asleep out of boredom. Sirius was constantly gently poking her in the side to get her to stop making ridiculous faces to try and entertain herself. Then, Harry made the mistake of thinking that her figurine Hippogriff (that she never left the house without) was his.

"Mine?" he asked, holding the hippogriff tightly by the wing. Aludra glanced over at him, and her eyes widened. She grabbed his new stuffed deer (curtosey of James and Lily) and wacked him soundly in the head.

"Mine!" she screeched, yanking it from his hands. Harry's eyes watered up, before he burst out wailing.

"Aludra!" Adelaide chastised, but Aludra wasn't listening. She was holding her Hippogriff tightly to her chest and glaring at Harry, who was now in Lily's arms and crying. Adelaide sighed in exasperation.

"Our kids hate each other," she said dully, "What are the odds?"

-

**Disclaimer: **Harry Potter and all things concerning belong to J.K. Rowling. I own Adelaide Vicknair, Vanessa Wolfe, Caryn Gree, Elise Barnes, Madeline Vicknair, Annalisa Bertucci, Professor Sicily and Jean Vicknair.

**A/N:** A quick response to one of my reviews that mentioned Aludra's growth: first off I really appreciate you mentioning something you find off. Secondly, I did a lot of research, and the site I found said that they begin to say some small things. That and I used my cousin as an example, and he was forming complete sentences and reading when he was two. That, and all children age differently and might talk later then others. I thought that I would just get that out of the way, and I really do appreciate you bringing it up.

WHY I CHOSE A WHITE CAT FOR ADELAIDE:

**Cat**- _Independence, Protection, Love_, Allows us to Dream its Dreams, Assists in Meditation, _Ability to Fight when Cornered_, Mystery, _Magic, Guardianship_, Detachment, Sensuality, Aloofness, _Balance,_ Wisdom, Recuperative Power, Reincarnation, Strong Protector, Self-Assured, _Searching for Hidden Information_, Seeing Spirits

**White**- symbolizing _light, reverence, purity, truth,_ snow, _peace, innocence_, cleanliness, simplicity, security, humility, _sterility,_ winter, coldness, surrender, fearfulness, unimaginative, air, death (in Eastern cultures), life, marriage (in Western cultures), _hope_, bland, empty (interior) and January (winter).

Italics mean that's what applys to her.

I didn't want it to be so cliché, but I liked what both meant. GRAWR!!

Yours truly,  
B.E.N.

P.S. I need some help. Just give me several names (That don't start with A) that you think are cute and/or attractive for guys! Please?? AND the last chapter is next!!! ((And this chapter sucked. Badly.)


	28. The Boy Who Lived

**Wallflower**

**Chapter Twenty-Eight: **The Boy Who Lived

Adelaide did _not _like this situation. She didn't like it one bit.

"Sirius, we trust you," James said, "You have no reason to betray us."

"You're being ridiculous!" Adelaide interjected angrily, tossing her hands up in the air, "You would never give in to anyone looking for them!"

"But they would suspect me!" Sirius protested for the fifth time, "Look, I hate suggesting it, but maybe Peter would be a better choice. No one would ever think that he's the secret keeper! He's always been below average and he's always been very cowardly. No one would think that you made him the secret keeper!" James sighed and ran his fingers through his hair, while Lily watched him with worry and held the half-way asleep Harry tightly to her chest.

"What about Remus?" Adelaide said quickly. Sirius groaned and leaned back in his seat.

"You know we can't be sure-."

"He loves you all like brothers!" she hissed, "Despite his Lycanthrope, he would _never _sell you all out! Never! If he wasn't trustworthy, I wouldn't have left Aludra with him tonight!"

"We need to be as cautious as possible!" Sirius said, raising his voice before he got out of his seat and paced to the window, where he glanced up at the small sliver that hung in the sky. It would be a New Moon soon.

"They're managed to find our locations five times already," Lily whispered, "It's either Remus or Peter telling anyone, and honestly I don't want to think it's Remus, but…"

"I can't let you make Peter the Secret Keeper!" Adelaide screamed, shocking them all. She tugged harshly on her hair and felt tears building up in her eyes from anger, "I don't trust him!!"

"I know that you don't like him-." Sirius tried to interject.

"This isn't because of that!" Adelaide groaned, "It's because of all about him! He's lost his credibility! That, and I've been thinking over this for a while, ever since I fought with Annalisa and she left that note-."

"What note?" James asked. Adelaide pulled the sliver of paper from her pocket and placed it on the kitchen table. Lily pulled it closer to her and glanced at Adelaide's markings, circling the hidden messages.

"Annalisa left this for me," Adelaide whispered, "I know that she's a death eater, and that makes her evil, but it's better then nothing. This is why I don't trust him. _Please _don't do this. Please." Her tears overflowed and she whipped her face clear, only for her cheeks to get soaked again. The others looked at the note, and Sirius clenched his jaw.

"Why didn't you tell us?" he asked, "We could have known earlier, we could have-."

"Because he was your friend, and you guys trusted him. I was giving him the benefit of the doubt. I wanted to see if his actions gave anything away, and everything adds up! His disappearances after dating Annalisa in seventh year, they occur so often, and he's always so awkward…I don't trust him. This makes it worse." James banged his fist onto the table and cursed angrily.

"God dammit!"

Lily stood and cradled Harry closer, "I'm taking him up stairs. I'll be right back."

"Adelaide, go with her," Sirius said. Adelaide raised an eyebrow at the command, and he relaxed slightly, "Please?" She nodded and followed Lily who went up the stairs and into Harry's new bedroom. She placed him in the crib and watched him tenderly, brushing his hair from his face.

"I don't want him to die," Lily whispered brokenly, "I don't want to loose him when I only just got him." Adelaide carefully gave Lily a one-armed hug before leading her back downstairs.

"We won't let him die," she whispered, "I swear to you."

As soon as their feet hit the bottom step, there was a large crash and a string of curses. Adelaide and Lily froze, and they heard laughter, and yelling.

"SUMMON THE ORDER!!"

"Oh no," Lily whispered, "They're here."

They acted quickly, Adelaide and Lily both sending out patronus' that left quickly, one a graceful doe and the other a large dog. Adelaide took a shaky breath, before steeling herself and barging into the kitchen, quickly scanning the room and sending multiple spells at the death eaters. She sneered at Peter, who was helping a masked Death Eater battle against Sirius. She hissed out in anger as she saw his sleeve on his left arm rolled up, revealing a pulsing dark mark. She pieced it together and knew that he had been listening in, and summoned back up.

"Peter!!" She screamed, sending hex after hex at the swarming Death Eaters. They all wore masks, making them un-namable.

Then there were flashes of white light as Order Members apparated in, and Adelaide felt a small sense of relief at their appearance. The battle commenced, and she spotted Sirius taking on three Death Eaters, and easily holding his own. She smiled with pride before sending a curse towards another death eater, causing him to collapse.

"We fight to kill!" an order member called to their comrades, and Adelaide nodded slightly. No one was holding back anymore.

The order had been gaining the upper hand, when Adelaide heard Lily scream out in terror.

"HARRY!"

Adelaide turned and saw the end of a black cloak swooping around the corner, and Lily darting across the crowded room and following qith panic. Adelaide moved to help, when she was intercepted by Peter.

"You aren't getting up those stairs until the Dark Lord is back down, and Harry and Lily are dead," he sneered, "_Expelliarmus!"_

Lily's heart was thudding in her chest, jumping into her throat and causing her to choke as she stumbled on the last stair. She head his laughter, cold and chilling, before she burst into Harry's room where Voldemort stood, pointing his wand at the now-awake baby, who was standing in his crib and watching him with a confused expression. Lily cried out in horror and fear, but Voldemort paid her no mind.

Lily acted quickly and pointed her wand at his back, and the two simultaneously screamed,

"_Avada Kadavra!"_

There were screams downstairs and the ceiling lurched and rocked, causing James' face to pale.

"Harry!" He cried, but was forced to fight with the pushy Death Eater. Almost half of the Death Eaters were incapacitated of killed, and the Order was standing strong with minimal casualties. Everyone could feel powerful magic surge from upstairs, dousing them all with the weird sensation that accompanied the magical blast.

"Lily!" Adelaide screamed, before she took her opening and charged upstairs. She felt her heart constrict with fear as she spotted the unhinged door, before hurrying into the room. It was a complete disaster, with the wall completely destroyed. She heard screams of outrage from downstairs, but her eyes were glued to the scene before her.

Lily was standing on wobbly knees, her wand outstretched, and looked amazed at her Toddler that stood in his crib, a scar on his head in the shape of a lightening bolt scar. Adelaide saw the body on the floor, and grimaced at the twisted snake-like features before she turned and used her magic to reset the door and placed multiple wards along the room, including the exposed wall, before turning and taking Lily into her arms.

"What the hell happened?" Adelaide whispered. Lily was shaking, and her eyes were glued to her baby.

"I-I sent the k-killing curse at h-him, a-and he sent it at Harry, but s-something happened…it backfired…Voldemort's dead." Adelaide let out a shaky breath, and held Lily tighter.

"We're staying here until it's safe," Adelaide explained, "We aren't giving anyone any more chances to harm him."

-

The kitchen was tense and relaxed at the same time as the remaining order members stood and stared in amazement at Lily, or specifically, the child in her arms. Lily was still shaking, and James had his arms wrapped around her and showed no signs of letting her go any time soon. Sirius stood beside Adelaide and Remus, and Adelaide was holding Aludra tightly to her chest. Dumbledore stood in the kitchen with a wary expression, but his blue eyes were calculating.

"They can stay with me," Adelaide offered quickly, "Until we come up with a plan."

"Our house isn't big enough," Sirius said with a frown. Adelaide smiled grimly.

"But my house is," she said, "Fay/Vicknair Mansion is still standing, and there is more then enough room to house them. You already know this." She smiled slightly as she remembered the good memories, "I can get Nobby to do a quick clean up, and we can get your things and be out of here as soon as you need."

"We can't ask you," Lily began. Adelaide interrupted her with a wave of her hand.

"You aren't asking, I'm offering," Adelaide corrected, "You have all been there for me, and it's time that I return the favor." Lily was about to interject, but was cut off by one of the less patient order members.

"How did this happen?" Emmeline Vance asked, "How did Harry survive?" Lily and Adelaide pursed her lips, but otherwise they stopped their conversation to hear the answer to satisfy their curiosity.

"I have come up with one solution," Dumbledore said, but he did not elaborate.

"Well?" Vance snapped. Dumbledore smiled lightly.

"Love." Vance raised her eyebrows, before snorting, but she otherwise didn't question his answer. Aludra stirred in Adeladie's arms, and blinked in confusion as she realized that she wasn't in her house. She spotted Harry, and frowned.

"Why he here?" she asked angrily. The rest of the orders looked horrified that someone had _dare _insult the wondrous 'boy who lived', while Adelaide, Sirius, James, and Lily all shared exasperated looks.

"Well, I guess one good things comes from her disliking him," Sirius said, shrugging his shoulders. The others looked at him, and he grinned cheekily, "It means that's one person who doesn't worship him." Adelaide snorted lightly.

"He'll have enough rabid fangirls to make up for it anyway," she joked. Lily frowned, while James held back a smile.

"I don't want him to grow up in the limelight," she protested, "I don't want him to turn into one of those spoiled stars!" Dumbledore crossed his fingers in front of him, and hummed slightly.

"Then, I suggest that you remain in hiding," he explained, "Aside from having him live as your every day child, he will be protected from the remaining Death Eaters that will seek revenge on Voldemort's behalf." Everyone began to agree then, and Lily and James seemed to realize that he would have many enemies, all because of some odd twist of fate. Lily hugged Harry closer to her, while James wrapped his arms around her middle and squeezed her softly.

"It'll be okay," he whispered.

"Do you know where you will stay?" Sirius asked, eyebrows furrowed in worry, "You can't stay here, the second floor is too damaged."

"We were planning on buying a house we saw briefly in Godrics Hallow," James explained, "That was going to be our next house, where we would have used the Fidelius Charm."

"How about this," Adelaide said quickly, "You stay with us at Vicknair Mansion until we can buy the house without anyone suspecting anything. We'll have to place it under some serious charms-"

"You want me to charm a house?"

"-I'm completely ignoring that statement. Anyway, after placing it under some strong wards and charms, you can move in and live under the sensory charms until almost all remaining Death Eaters are either dead or in Azkaban. That way, Harry will live a normal life for a large portion of his life and when he is revealed to the public then there will be a very slim possibility of Death Eaters coming after him to avenge their masters death." She smiled as she finished, and Sirius gave her a sideways hug.

"I always knew you were smart," he said playfully, and she gently elbowed him. Dumbledore smiled.

"I don't see why this plan wouldn't work," he said, gently nodding his head after a second, "I believe that will be the best course of action." Adelaide smiled slightly, her cheeks dusting a light pink, and Lily smiled in relief.

"Hey, if we're lucky, Ally will get used to Harry," Lily joked lightly. Aludra wrinkled her nose, before blowing a raspberry at Harry.

"Ally!" Harry giggled, holding out his hand and waving. Aludra grimaced before turning her head and glaring at the wall. Harry remained oblivious before giggling and looking at Lily with a large smile. Lily sighed, but returned the smile.

"Don't you think it's odd that the first person he can name out loud is the only person that continues to dislike him?" she asked. Adelaide shrugged and gently rubbed Aludra's back, who relaxed and rested her jaw on her shoulder.

"She'll warm up to him," Adelaide assured, "It'll be like a brother-sister relationship: they continue to dislike each other, and annoy each other, but secretly like each other." Sirius and James gave her amused glances, and she thought over her sentence quickly, before blushing and slapping Sirius' chest.

"Not like that, you idiots!!" Sirius laughed and rubbed where her hand connected with his chest.

"You know we're kidding," he said, before leaning down and giving her a soft kiss, "I love you." She smiled and entwined her free hand with his.

"I love you too."

-

**Disclaimer: **Harry Potter and all things concerning belong to J.K. Rowling. I own Adelaide Vicknair, Vanessa Wolfe, Caryn Gree, Elise Barnes, Madeline Vicknair, Annalisa Bertucci, Professor Sicily and Jean Vicknair.

**A/N:** So, forget the epilogue, it doesn't exist any more, and this is…the end of Wallflower. I iz so happiez!!!! :DDDD Next is Edelweiss, but don't expect it too soon. I have school going on and I am DETERMINED to raise my grades, to get NO C's, to get a minimum amount of B's, and to get a 3.0 or higher GPA (right now it's a 2.95 because I slacked off in math. :( Stupid math!)

ANYWAY: Thank you so much for reviewing and sticking with me till the end and all your help!! I LOVE YOU ALL!!!!!! :DDDDDDD ::sniff:: now I'm all emotional. :"(

Yours truly,  
B.E.N.

P.S: Get it? Under the sensory charms? Under the Radar? LOL wow I'm lame. XP


	29. Edelweiss

**A/N: EDELWEISS IS UP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! YAY!!!!! Go check it out! NOW!!! I DEMAND IT!!!!!**

**I LOVE YOU ALL!!!! ::KISSES::**


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